World Gratitude Day
This week’s theme at Langley is gratitude. World Gratitude Day is celebrated each year on the 21st of September. The day aims to remind us of the importance of gestures of thanks and appreciation. It was founded by Sri Chin-moy, an Indian spiritual leader who was credited with making meditation popular in the USA in 1960s and 70s. In 1977 a UN resolution was passed recognising the 21st of September as the date of the annual World Gratitude Day.
Gratitude is not just being thankful for something or someone, it is act of showing that you are thankful and appreciative in words and deeds. As busy individuals, the days, weeks and months can pass us by quickly. It can be easy to forget to say thank you to people who have been kind to us in some way, especially if these things happen regularly.
Gratitude typically is small regular things rather than grand gestures. It is the showing of thanks and appreciation, recognition and enjoyment of the good qualities of someone or something. It’s an action, not just a thought. We do gratitude!
When someone does something nice for us, it can give us a feel-good moment that can bring a lot of positivity to the rest of our day. Taking the time to thank that person reflects the positivity back to them and creates a wonderful domino effect for everyone around us; gratitude breeds gratitude. Gratitude can and should be a culture in homes, places of work and in our school.
Showing gratitude has benefits for both the receiver and also the giver of gratitude. It help us to feel valued, bring happiness to others, bring happiness to ourselves, build trust and respect in our relationships, increase our effectiveness and productivity (we are more likely to do things when people appreciate what we do) and help us to value the good things in our lives especially the people around us.
If we do these things, gratitude can and will become a super positive habit. When we show gratitude, everyone wins!
Please see below a Youtube video on the science of gratitude:
Mr Walker’s gratitude challenge:
- Thank people.
- Tell someone when they are doing a great job.
- Actively listening and showing interest in others.
- Be generous with our time.
- Celebrate others successes.
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