Suddenly, I was struck with a feeling of divine gratitude (because I couldn’t have been thankful otherwise) that I wasn’t the last person in line. This episode repeated itself many times throughout the years. Often, it would be a small reminder of people who had less than I did to make me feel thankful to God. But how do we become grateful without those reminders?

Gratitude is a hard virtue to adopt. In a world where the average person is exposed to 3,000 advertisements a day, it’s truly a miracle that most teenagers haven’t gone insane. However, those 3,000 ads definitely influence us. Products and services are marketed in ways that make the individual feel as though they don’t have something they need. That’s 3,000 reminders of all the things that you don’t have every day. How do we even begin to be grateful for what we already have?

This question led me to create a gratitude list — a simple list filled with the things I am grateful for. At first, I thought I was only going to have about 10 points to write (I wasn’t in a happy mood); but soon the list expanded to three pages double-sided and it’s still growing. The list can include absolutely anything from being thankful for a good family to a hot breakfast in the morning. You’ll be surprised to find all the little things that make such a big difference to your life.

The most beautiful part about making a gratitude list is actually using it. Whenever you feel overwhelmed or disappointed, take out this list to remind yourself of all the things you already have and let that be the source of your happiness.

Before making this list, my tongue was a bit lazy to give thanks to God. I’d often need a lot of pushing before I said a half-hearted “thank you” to God. Now I sit here befuddled at the fact that no matter how many times I say thank you, it will never add up to the amount of graces and blessings I’ve received. But that doesn’t discourage me from being thankful.

The key to happiness is gratitude to God. In the beginning, you might need someone to point out all the people who are waiting behind you in the line of life to make you feel grateful for where you are. I hope one day we can still be grateful without those reminders just as it says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18: “Be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus.”

(Ann Chazhoor, 17, is a Grade 12 student at Turner Fenton Secondary School in Brampton, Ont.)