A couple of years ago I had an interview at an East London hospital.

I arrived with plenty of time to find where I had to go. Once I had found the location, I got myself a drink and sat in a nearby square to relax.

This small square was covered with rubbish and the rubbish bins were overflowing. Boys from a local school came to play football but first they had to kick away some of the rubbish.

As I watched this play out, I wondered why less affluent neighbourhoods can be messy and neglected. There could be many different socioeconomic reasons but the idea that stayed with me was that the people living here may see it as a temporary solution.

Because it could be seen as a temporary place to live, they may not have pride in their current environment as their focus is towards where they dream to be.

In comparison, the town where I live is generally very tidy and the people are mostly well off. People seem settled and take care of their surroundings.

Could there be a flip side of this, could be being settled, content and proud of your surroundings make you more successful? This statement is only a theory but being settled in the present is definitely very important.

Another example is someone who is given an old car. Because they didn’t invest in this vehicle either financially or emotionally, they may use and abuse the car. Very little care is taken and basic maintenance is neglected. After a while the car fails letting the driver down.

If the driver was grateful and appreciative of this car, they would have carried out appropriate maintenance and the car may have lasted many more years.

Wherever you are and whatever you have, it’s time to be grateful. Learn to appreciate the gifts that have been presented to you.

Appreciation could be tiding and cleaning where you live, maintaining your car, washing and ironing your clothes and taking special care of those you love.

By simply appreciating where you live now, will make it your home.

Have gratitude of where you are now and live in the present moment. Embrace all the opportunities as they present themselves. It’s all too easy to spend your life dreaming of what tomorrow may hold but remember tomorrow is always a day away.

Mark- The Alchemist’s Journey

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Footnote

If you look up the word appreciate in a thesaurus, it lists synonyms such as grow, increase in value and go up in price. Maybe being able to appreciate could be a step towards abundance and financial freedom?