When you are grateful - when you can see what you have - you

The voice of Suze Orman, though born in the modern age, speaks with the timeless cadence of the ancients: “When you are grateful—when you can see what you have—you unlock blessings to flow in your life.” In this saying lies a law as old as the dawn. Gratitude does not simply acknowledge blessings; it multiplies them. To be blind to what one already possesses is to live in poverty, no matter how much wealth surrounds you. But to see with eyes of thanksgiving is to open the gates of abundance, where joy, peace, and provision flow like rivers.

To be grateful is to awaken from the dream of lack. It is to stand amidst the ordinary and recognize the extraordinary. Food upon the table, breath in the lungs, a hand to hold, a dawn that rises—these are treasures that many ignore while chasing shadows. Orman teaches that when you see what you have, you create space in your heart for more to come. The soul that complains grows stagnant, but the soul that gives thanks becomes a vessel into which heaven pours its riches. Gratitude is the key that unlocks hidden doors.

The ancients themselves bore witness to this truth. The Israelites, wandering in the desert, often grumbled despite the manna that fell from heaven. In their ingratitude, they found only bitterness and delay. Yet when they sang songs of thanksgiving, their spirits lifted and strength returned. Likewise, the Stoic philosophers counseled men to count daily what they possessed, to root joy not in future gain but in present abundance. The lesson is repeated across history: the heart that says thank you attracts blessing, while the heart that murmurs chases it away.

Consider the story of Oprah Winfrey, a woman who rose from poverty and hardship to worldwide influence. She often testified that her life began to transform when she kept a gratitude journal, writing each day five things she was thankful for. This simple act shifted her focus from scarcity to abundance, and doors of opportunity opened before her. What Orman declares, Oprah lived: gratitude does not merely record blessings—it creates them. The more she gave thanks, the more reasons she found to give thanks.

This wisdom is not magical but spiritual and practical. The grateful heart is alert, awake, and receptive. It sees opportunities where the ungrateful see obstacles. It draws people, for who does not wish to bless one who radiates joy? It strengthens resilience, for trials cannot choke a spirit rooted in thanksgiving. Thus, gratitude is not passive but active—a force that changes the course of life itself.

The lesson for us is clear: if we desire blessings to flow, we must first open the channel through gratitude. Do not wait for grand miracles to be thankful. Begin now, with the smallest things—the air that fills your lungs, the water that quenches your thirst, the voice of a friend, the light in the morning sky. Name them, write them, speak them aloud. In doing so, you train the soul to see abundance where once it saw only emptiness.

Practically, let each one of us make gratitude a daily discipline. Upon waking, name three things you are thankful for before you rise. Throughout the day, when hardship comes, pause and ask: What good remains in this moment? At night, record your blessings, no matter how small, for the act of remembrance deepens the well of joy. As you practice, you will find that new doors open, new joys appear, and life itself seems to multiply in favor.

Thus, Suze Orman’s teaching is not only counsel but command: be grateful, and you will live in abundance. For the one who sees what they have will never live in want, and the one who gives thanks will never cease to find reason for more thanksgiving. In gratitude, you hold the key to life’s hidden treasury. Unlock it, and let the blessings flow.