There is a difference between practice and attitude.

Attitude describes “A manner of thinking, feeling, or behaving that reflects a state of mind or disposition.” Practice on the other hand is doing something repeatedly, either to learn something or to make a habit of it.

They are distinct but need one another. Confusing both means that people will often be discouraged when aspiring to be in a specific state of mind. It’s one of the reasons gratefulness can be hard.

Gratitude is a practice. It may lead to a state of mind, but it requires constant practice. Without practice, it’ll dwindle again. We can’t keep the moment of gratefulness and expand it beyond the moment.

Practice only makes gratitude easier. It doesn’t establish it.

Practicing gratefulness is far away from a quest for the extraordinary. By constantly measuring the experience and looking for the extraordinary we miss the details we appreciate.

Instead, choose a practice that includes seeing the little details. It establishes a constructive practice and helps see what our life consists of.

The multitude of little things we got accustomed to. A smile when we keep forgetting something. The sound of the door opening when coming home. The smell when entering our favorite restaurant.

Gratitude is the practice of seeing what we have and acknowledging it.

It’s there to remind us of the richness of life and transforms our experience of joy.

Gratefulness teaches us that loss is independent of joy, and that joy not lived to its fullest makes loss terrifying.

Gratefulness enables us to let go, knowing that enjoyed life is filled with gratefulness.

That’s present when practice contributes to attitude.