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Allen Iverson
Many people believe that they will be happy once they arrive at some specific goal they set for themselves.However, more often than not, once you arrive “there” you will still feel dissatisfied, and move your “there” vision to yet another point in the future. By always chasing after another “there”, you are never really appreciating what you already have right “here”. It is important for human beings to keep sober-minded about the age-old drive to look beyond the place where you now stand. On one hand, your life is enhanced by your dreams and aspirations. On the other hand, these drives can pull you farther and farther from your enjoyment of your life right now. By learning the lessons of gratitude and abundance, you can bring yourself closer to fulfilling the challenge of living in the present.
Gratitude
To be grateful means you are thankful for and appreciative of what you have and where you are on your path right now. Gratitude fills your heart with the joyful feeling and allows you to fully appreciate everything that arises on your path. As you strive to keep your focus on the present moment, you can experience the full wonder of “here”.
There are many ways to cultivate gratitude. Here are just a few suggestions you may wish to try:
1. Imagine what your life would be like if you lost all that you had. This will most surely remind you of how much you do appreciate it.
2. Make a list each day of all that you are grateful for, so that you can stay conscious daily of your blessings. Do this especially when you are feeling as though you have nothing to feel grateful for. Or spend a few minutes before you go to sleep giving thanks for all that you have.
3. Spend time offering assistance to those who are less fortunate than you, so that you may gain perspective.
However you choose to learn gratitude is irrelevant. What really matters is that you create a space in your consciousness for appreciation for all that you have right now, so that you may live more joyously in your present moment.
Abundance
One of the most common human fears is scarcity. Many people are afraid of not having enough of what they need or want, and so they are always striving to get to a point when they would finally have enough.
Alan and Linda always dreamed of living “the good life”. Both from poor working-class families, they married young and set out to fulfill their mutual goal of becoming wealthy. They both worked very hard for years, amassing a small fortune, so they could move from their two-bedroom home to a palatial sevenbedroom home in the most upscale neighborhood. They focused their energies on accumulating all the things they believed signified abundance: membership in the local exclusive country club, luxury cars, designer clothing, and high-class society friends. No matter how much they accumulated, however, it never seemed to be enough. They were unable to erase the deep fear of scarcity both had acquired in childhood.
Indeed, they needed to learn the lesson of abundance. Then the stock market crashed in 1987, and Alan and Linda lost a considerable amount of money. A bizarre but costly lawsuit depleted another huge portion of their savings. One thing led to another, and they found themselves in a financial disaster. Assets needed to be sold, and eventually they lost the country club membership, the cars, and the house. It took several years and much hard work for Alan and Linda to land on their feet, and though they now live a life far from extravagant, they have taken stock of their lives and feel quite blessed. Only now, as they assess what they have left—a solid, loving marriage, their health, a dependable income, and good friends—do they realize that true abundance comes not from amassing, but rather from appreciating.
Scarcity consciousness arises as a result of the “holein-the-soul syndrome”. This is when we attempt to fill the gaps in our inner lives with things from the outside world. But like puzzle pieces, you can't fit something in where it does not naturally belong. No amount of external objects, affection, love, or attention can ever fill an inner void. We already have enough, so we should revel in our own interior abundance.
许多人都相信，一旦他们达到了自己所设定的某个特定目标，他们就会快乐。然而，更多的事实往往是，当你到达“彼岸”时，你仍然会感到不满足，并且将你的“彼岸”指向未来的另一个景象。始终追求一个又一个的“彼岸”，你永远都无法欣赏到你已经到达的“此处”。对于人们来说，不安现状的欲望存在已久，但更重要的是应保持头脑清醒。一方面，你的生活因为梦想和渴望而更加精彩。另一方面，这些欲望又使你越来越不懂得珍惜和享受现在所拥有的生活。通过学习感恩和知足这一课，你会离战胜当下生活中的挑战更进一步。
感恩
感恩是指你感谢、珍惜你所拥有的一切，以及你目前所处的人生境遇。心中充满感激之情，你的心灵就会充满愉悦，你就能充分领悟到人生道路上的一切经历。如果你把眼光聚焦在此时此刻，你就能感受到在“此处”的美妙之处。
有许多方法可以培养感恩之心，以下这些建议不妨试试看：
1. 想象如果你失去了你所拥有的一切，你的生活将会怎么样。这一定会让你想起，原来你有多么感激现在的一切。
2. 每天列出所有值得你心存感激的事，这样每天你都能意识到自己的幸运。坚持这样做，尤其是当你感觉似乎没什么可感激的时候。或者，在睡觉前花几分钟时间，感谢你所拥有的一切。
3. 花些时间，去帮助那些没你这么幸运的人，这样你或许会对生活有新的认识。
事实上，你选择怎样的方法去学习感恩，这无关紧要。真正重要的是，你应该有意识地去感激你所拥有的一切，这样你就能更快乐地享受当下。
知足常乐
人类最普遍的恐惧之一就是贫穷。许多人担心他们的所需所求不够，所以他们总是努力使自己最终能拥有一切。
艾伦和琳达总是梦想着能过上“好日子”。他们都来自于贫困的工薪阶层家庭，年纪轻轻就早早结了婚，然后开始为他们共同的致富目标而努力。他们拼命工作了很多年，积累了一些资金，然后就从两居室搬到了一所高档社区的富丽堂皇的七居室大房子。此后，他们把精力都放在那些他们以为是代表富足的事情上：当地惟一的一家乡村俱乐部的会员资格，豪华轿车，名牌服装，上流社会的朋友。但是，无论他们积累了多少财富，似乎都是不足够的。他们无法抹去童年时代因贫穷而产生的深刻恐惧感。
事实上，他们就需要学会知足常乐这一课。1987年股市暴跌，艾伦和琳达损失了一大笔钱。一场莫名其妙的昂贵的官司又耗尽了他们另一大笔积蓄。这一件接一件的祸事，导致他们陷入了经济危机之中。他们不得不变卖资产，最终失去了乡村俱乐部的会员资 格、汽车和房子。他们花了好几年的时间，才努力从困境中走出来，尽管他们现在已经远离奢侈，但他们主宰着自己的生活，感到幸运又知足。只有此刻，他们才掂量着尚未远离的一切——坚固相爱的婚姻、健康的身体、稳定的收入、真正的朋友等——他们终于意识到，真正的富足并非来自于财富的积累，而是来自于感激和珍惜。
贫穷感产生于“精神空虚综合症”，也就是我们试图用外界之物来填补内心的空虚。但是，就像拼图游戏一样，你不能把它硬放在原本不属于它的位置上。任何身外之物、感情、爱或关注，都无法填补内心的空虚。我们拥有的已经足够，因此，我们应满足于内心世界的丰富与充实。
【名人语库】
Have no fear of perfection—you'll never reach it.
【 Salvador Dali 】
不要为十全十美担心——你永远做不到十全十美。
【萨尔瓦多·达利（西班牙画家）】