“I’m a Lucky Man to Count on Both Hands,
The Ones That I Love”
— Just Breathe, Pearl Jam (Eddie Vedder), featured in Life As We Know It
This lyric from Just Breathe, later featured in the rom-com Life As We Know It, is a beautiful reminder to be grateful for what we already have and to anchor ourselves in appreciation.
Gratitude is one of the ten positive emotions that Barbara Fredrickson identified in her Broaden and Build Theory — alongside joy, love, hope, and awe. Like all positive emotions, gratitude broadens our outlook and awareness, and over time builds lasting emotional resilience and personal resources that support our long-term wellbeing.
We are all grateful for something. A loving family. One more day. Food on the table when everything else fell apart. But we tend to feel gratitude most strongly when something becomes rare, threatened, or nearly lost.
The real shift happens when you start noticing the small things you take for granted.
The gesture of someone getting you a coffee. The dishes done without being asked. Walking out your own front door on your own feet. Holding a balloon until you’re ready to let it go. Millions of tiny goodness moments hide in plain sight.
When frustration, disappointment, or anger become more frequent visitors than you’d like, know this: the pathways that let light in are blocked. Your universe is trying to reach you, but it can’t find a way through. Gratitude is what clears the path.
It is in appreciation of the tiny moments that your story changes.
You start noticing how someone cares, how joy doesn’t always need a grand occasion, how lucky you are to have someone to laugh with — or even to dance around by yourself. Gratitude is the one emotion that holds peace, happiness, and letting go, all at once. It is, as Dr. Robert Emmons’ research confirms, fundamentally rewires the brain toward resilience, effectively blocking toxic, negative emotions.
Gratitude is the masterstroke for emotional wellness.
Here are a few ways to practise it:
- Start a verbal gratitude journal. Say out loud, “I’m lucky to…” or “Thank you for this moment” whenever you notice a tiny goodness moment. Naming it out loud makes it real.
- Reframe the oddballs. Cognitive reframing consciously shifts perspective. Flip the disappointment after a lost match to “I’m grateful for this opportunity and what I learned.” Or a tiring work day to “I’m glad to be back in my comfort zone.”
The feeling follows the frame. - Write a micro-note. Send a quick, genuine thank-you message to someone for the little things they do every now and then. Acknowledge the quiet things, the things they may not even know you noticed.
When you open yourself to gratitude, you clear the path for the universe’s goodness to flow in. Lean in, and help yourself flourish.
