Uncovering Feelings

Gratitude is a human emotion that expresses appreciation for what one has. It is a positive psychology trait and has been proved through research to be associated with prolonged life and improved general well-being. In fact if one examines the different religions in the world, its easily noticeable that most of these religions place emphasis on showing appreciation to god, and one's own life.

Through this assignment, I have come to realize that I generally feel grateful when I am pleased with anyone or any situation. Indeed when I feel positive, I can easily find something to appreciate and be thankful for. This can be reflected through all of the different types of situations I was in.

Generally when someone performs a service or deed advantageous to me, I feel the need to say "thank you". Although it is a small gesture of politeness, I feel that it in fact has some deep reverberations into one's general well-being. For instance when I needed to move rooms thanks to the flood of Fort LaSalle, my squadron tasked a section of first years to me to help me. At the same time, I was under a lot of stress as I had a major history research essay due. Their assistance allowed a burden to be lifted off my shoulders as the move happened within only two hours whereas without them, it would have taken all night. I repeatedly thanked them throughout the move and I feel that when I show thanks, it is a physical reminder that I owe my advantageous position as a result of the action of someone else. It forces me to realize that I am not alone in this world and that there are always others who can be depended on for support. Furthermore, I experienced the desire to reciprocate through some form as I feel that I was indebted to them. This encourages me to become more social as I engage to help them in their time of need. As I become more social, my state of well-being in life is also being elated.

There was another situation in which I felt grateful, and that is for the constants in my life such as my friends. My feeling of gratitude was much more amplified when I experience the transformation from negative to positive emotions as a result of interactions with them. For example, at the end of the day I usually plan my shower times to synchronize with that of my roommate. This form of socialization allows my roommate and me to communicate freely as we are performing a stress-free activity. We were able to recount our experiences during the day to each other, vent our frustrations, and share our delights or the odd gossips of interest. Overall, this experience bonds us closer together as mutual confidants. Despite the fact that there were no clear physical actions of showing gratitude, our internal emotions of gratitude for our friendship were expressed in our body language and tone of voice. Before the shower, I felt very negative as a day at RMC can be lonely and stressful. However when I walked away from