We all take things for granted. It’s only after we lose them, we realize about it’s presence and impact on us. Look at your body, you have eyes, ears, hands, fingers, legs, and almost everything you need to survive comfortably in this planet.

You take all your body parts for granted. Handicapped people only realize how lucky you are and how unfortunate they were to lose a part of their body. You never realize that. If you do realize, it’s only when you lose or hurt it really bad.

How would you feel if you were to lose some of your body part?

If you were to lose your eye sight, you wouldn’t be able to view this wonderful world. But do you view it when you have? Of course you do, but you don’t view it to embrace it’s beauty.

You probably have lots of other things that you need to work on. If it doesn’t go according to your plan, you get angry. But you have everything necessary to live comfortably in this planet. Why do you long for more and get sad or angry during the limited time you live on earth?

I guess it’s human nature to long for more after you are comfortable with your present situation. But you don’t realize how lucky you are or how unfortunate you’d be if you were to lose them.

So, one of the ways to make yourself aware of how lucky you are strip off your comfort.

Which means, leave without something which you already own. For example: I have been riding bike for a long time. I don’t know how it feels to ride public transportation anymore. Before I owned a bike, I used to think everyone who owns bike were pretty lucky and living their life in comfort because they could travel whenever and wherever they wished.

I was really happy when I first owned a bike. But after some years, I forgot about it. I was unhappy over other stuff. I was in the point where I had stopped feeling fortunate or happy that I owned a bike. I needed something else to elevate my level of happiness.

Yesterday, I thought of leaving my bike at home and experiencing the old transportation mode — which made me realize at once — how lucky I was to own and ride a bike. I could go anywhere I want without having to rely on mediocre public transportation services.

Live a day without internet and you’ll feel fortunate the next day that you have internet.

In retrospect, strip off anything that’s comfortable (voluntary discomfort). It’s not to beat yourself, but to feel gratitude over things you already own.