Today, it is far harder to accept the joy and struggle of life and to learn to love and appreciate the life we have. This is not because the world is getting worse, unlike what many people think.
On the other hand, data suggests that our world is improving. Let's examine the kind of thinking that is necessary for us to celebrate life.
In a worldwide survey, 87% of participants said they thought that over the previous 20 years, poverty has either become worse or stayed the same. But fewer than half of the world's poverty decreased over this time.
This misperception is caused by the media, which thrives on negativity, and societal income disparity, which is fueled by a very small number of individuals owning the majority of the world's wealth.
In actuality, we frequently draw parallels between the present and other individuals as well as between our own society and the past.
Social comparison stands in the way of finding a fulfilling life. the error of constantly evaluating ourselves against the best. If this comparison makes us feel unhappy, that unhappy emotion could actually be a good thing if it inspires us to make some adjustments in our life.
But most of the time, the problems we face stem from circumstances that are beyond our control or that take time to resolve. In this instance, we blame outside factors for our contentment.
Of course, it may sound overly optimistic to find serenity and to be grateful for the life we have during a time when it is extremely difficult to meet even our most basic requirements.
But if we keep in mind that the only thing we have control over is our attitude, we can concentrate on finding ways to celebrate life.
We can fly and imagine a different kind of civilization in space because we accept the presence of the law of gravity rather than rejecting it. Accepting what is and the truth about it is the same thing.
Rejecting reality is not an aspect of acceptance. Many of the conditions we wish to change might never change, just as the rules of physics remain constant. In actuality, this is a universal truth for the idea of the "past."
We can still be unable to fully appreciate the present because of our fixations with the past. Our desire for other people, or even other nations, to change can also cause us to become reality-resistant.
But we can become better at accepting things as they are by accepting them as they are and concentrating on the things we can control.