17 Things I Never Thought I Would Be Thankful For That Now I Wouldn’t Trade For Anything

It’s not the stuff you’d write on the inside of a Hallmark card or share around the dinner table, but it’s the important stuff that often gets overlooked. It’s the stuff that shapes you into the person you are.

Life has a funny way of shaping each person individually, but instead of dwelling on the bad it might have thrown at you you should be thankful for things. If you didn’t ever feel sadness you would never appreciate being happy. Everyone has to deal with pain, sorrow and envy, but let it make you better, not bitter, and start seeing the world in a new light.

1.

I am thankful I can’t go back and change some of the mistakes I’ve made, no matter how bad I wanted to at the time. They’ve helped mold me into the person I am today. I’ve learned some valuable lessons along the way because of them.

2.

I am thankful for all of the times I didn’t know the answers because it meant I had the opportunity to learn. It also meant I was fortunate enough to get an education.

3.

I am thankful for the difficult times because it gives me an opportunity to grow as a person.

4.

I am thankful for all the things that I have wanted and not received. It’s made me realize that I don’t need more, I have everything I need and more isn’t going to make me happier.

5.

I am thankful to know what it feels like to love someone and have them not love me back because I know what it feels like to be truly cared about and appreciated.

6.

I am thankful for all the times I’ve fallen down because every time I’ve gotten back up and it’s always lead me forward.

7.

I am thankful that I can feel everything so deeply, because it has taken me to the highest highs and the lowest lows.

8.

I am thankful that I’ve failed because it only motivates me to work harder if I want to achieve my goals. I know I will have more failures in the future, but it is only incentive to become better.

9.

I am thankful for the times I’ve said no, even when I didn’t want to.

10.

I am thankful for the times I’ve tried again when I should have walked away.

11.

I am thankful I don’t know the future. I just get to live day by day and make the most of them without my attention being shifted to tragedy and an expiration date.

12.

I am thankful for all the times I’ve been humiliated and embarrassed because as ashamed as I felt at the time, it has only made me stronger and helped me see more clearly.

13.

I am thankful that I haven’t always been treated with complete respect, because it makes me realize how I deserve to be treated and teaches me how to treat others.

14.

I am thankful for all the friends that I’ve lost along the way. Not for bad reasons, but because life changes and it showed me who is going to be there when distance is a factor and you need someone to lean on.

15.

I am thankful for second chances, and even third chances. Because sometimes I need them when my big mouth or greedy heart does wrong the first time around.

16.

I am thankful for heartbreak because I understand what it feels like to be in pain, and it helps me understand love and loss.

17.

I am thankful my life can be a mess because it is a beautiful mess and I wouldn’t change a thing. It teaches me something every day and that is something to be truly thankful for.