Each and every day I truly wake up, I'm thankful to have a life

Hear the words of Tobias Harris, spoken not with arrogance, but with the quiet strength of gratitude: “Each and every day I truly wake up, I’m thankful to have a life and be alive. I’m thankful to do what I do.” In these words lies a wisdom as old as time, for the ancients themselves taught that the first gift of every dawn is simply this—that we open our eyes once more, that breath fills our lungs, and that the path of purpose still lies before us. Too often men awaken and take the morning for granted, as though it were owed to them. Harris reminds us that life itself is not a right but a blessing, renewed with every rising sun.

The ancients knew the holiness of waking. The Egyptians praised the sun god Ra, who each day triumphed over darkness to bring light and life back to the world. The Stoics of Greece and Rome counseled that every morning should be met with reflection, gratitude, and resolve. Marcus Aurelius himself, emperor of Rome, began his days reminding himself that simply to be alive was fortune enough, and that each breath was an opportunity to live with virtue. Harris echoes this tradition, giving thanks not only for grand victories, but for the most essential miracle: being alive.

But his words do not stop there. He is not only grateful for life, but for the chance to do what he loves—to labor in his craft, to play the game that has become his purpose. For to be alive without direction is to drift, but to live with passion is to soar. Harris’s gratitude encompasses both—the gift of existence and the gift of calling. To wake each day with purpose is to taste the fullness of human life, for work infused with joy becomes worship, and labor aligned with passion becomes strength.

Consider the story of Helen Keller, who, though blind and deaf, woke each day with joy in the life she had. She declared that life itself was either a daring adventure or nothing at all. Though deprived of senses many take for granted, she was deeply thankful simply to be alive, and her work of speaking and writing inspired millions. Like Harris, she recognized that to do what you do with gratitude is to transform life’s struggles into life’s triumphs.

There is also in Harris’s statement a challenge for us all: do not let gratitude fade into silence. To say “I am thankful” is to shape the heart against bitterness and despair. Many awaken with complaints, seeing only burdens ahead. But the one who begins with thankfulness will carry light into every task. Gratitude turns the ordinary into sacred; it turns routine into ritual and transforms struggle into strength.

The lesson is clear: each day is not owed, but granted. To be alive is fortune. To labor in your chosen path is treasure. Therefore, begin each dawn with gratitude, as Harris does. Give thanks for breath, for strength, for purpose. And if your purpose is not yet clear, give thanks still for the chance to seek it, for the journey of finding is itself a gift.

Practical wisdom follows: rise each morning and pause before rushing into the day. Speak aloud what you are thankful for, even if only the breath in your chest and the chance to walk another mile. Carry that gratitude into your work, whether humble or grand, and let it shape your actions. In this way, your life will not be consumed by complaint, but lifted by thanksgiving.

Thus, Tobias Harris’s words become not just a reflection of one man’s life but a teaching for all generations: “Each and every day I wake up, I am thankful to be alive and to do what I do.” This is the creed of the wise, the shield of the strong, and the song of the grateful. Live with this spirit, and every day will shine as a blessing, no matter how great the trial or how small the triumph.