We are all guilty (to varying degrees) of not appreciating what it is that is important to us until it is no longer with us.

This applies to the big stuff, such as health, family and loved ones, as much as to the less obvious.

One of the surest ways to be happy in life is to consciously appreciate the many gifts we have which we take for granted.

Of course, this is easier said than done. It requires discipline and practice.

We have pressures of work and family life – it’s easy to get caught up in it all and lose sight of what really matters.

Over the years, we slowly accumulate more and more soul junk, burying our natural sparkle under a mountain of worry, stress and frustration.

We stop doing the things that make us happy and concentrate more of our time on the things that we feel we need to do to maintain our status, wealth or possessions.

Even though we know that these are not the most important or nurturing elements of our life.

Are we so immersed in the day to day that we cannot step back and look around for a while, evaluating what is important to us at our core?

Apparently we are. Yet, it is not difficult to do. In fact, it can be achieved with as little as 5 or 10 minutes a day. And it won’t cost a penny.

The simplest way to gain a deeper appreciation of life and the many riches we already possess is to make a list of all the things that we are grateful for.

By sitting down every morning and writing out our list, we will be taking an important step towards contentment and leading a life that is in keeping with our values.

It may feel awkward at first: we can put down a few obvious ones, such as health, security, loved ones or our Muse.

Then we may struggle for a while.

If we stick with it, however, we soon find ourselves noticing things that we can add to our list – the birds singing in the morning, the smell of freshly baked bread, that look in the eye of our loved one when we share a moment.

The act of writing down a list of things to be grateful for, encourages us to look for things to put on the list.

This in turn has a positive impact on our outlook – we are no longer looking for reasons why we are upset, stressed or angry: we are looking for reasons to be grateful.