{ Grateful Heart Monday, hosted by Ember Grey, is a series + week-long linkup that is about starting each week with a grateful heart. }

Sunday evening, as the sun began to set and the sky’s colors warmed to embrace night, I sat on the back porch with my parents, laughing and sharing thoughts about life. They encouraged my heart as I explained the struggle of accepting where you are in life when you have a calling that feels so real. We talked of patience and pathways, of struggles and rejoices, and I soaked up the all the knowledge shared in between.

“You know what it is?” I said as a sudden realization washed over me. “It’s entitlement. When we can’t accept where we are in life, it implies that we deserve different or better. We think we’re ‘owed’ something, when in reality, we should just be grateful for each day.”

We sat sharing instances how entitlement had wiggled its way into our lives and thoughts. Warmth swept over the conversation as we all openly admitted moments of entitlement. It’s such an ugly word; it’s hard not to run away from it with claims of being immune. The truth of the matter is: it’s a human flaw. If you’re alive, entitlement has tip-toed through your life at one point or another.

“I had to go through _______, where is my pay-off?” or “I just faced so much hardship, when will my ‘good time’ come around?“

No one is immune to moments of entitlement, some of us are just better at acknowledging entitled thoughts as they surface. As our conversation came to a close, I sat quietly with my thoughts, questioning if I was active in acknowledging entitlement or if I just let it slip into my life without caution.

Within minutes, I knew the answer didn’t matter. It doesn’t matter whether we acknowledge entitlement or if we let it slip into our lives without caution, what matters is what we do in response once we know that it’s there.

And for me, that response is going to the ocean. When my path seems unclear and I feel it should be easier, I go to the ocean. When I feel jealousy arise over others’ opportunities, I go to the ocean. When I begin to believe I’ve been wronged or slighted, I go to the ocean. Why? Because you can’t stand in front of the vast ocean and still feel big.

As you watch the waves roll in and out, knowing that they are housing another world that is entirely separate from our day-to-day, we’re reminded of how small we are. The problems, challenges, and barriers that we are facing in life suddenly wash away, just like the frothy sea foam that dances to and fro on the surface of the waves.

As you stand breathing in the fresh salt air, gazing across water that seemingly has no end, we’re reminded that just like the ocean, our potential has no end. And potential can only be stifled and smothered by entitlement; potential cannot be realized or embraced when we’re stuck focusing on small matters that mean nothing in the big picture. It’s a humbling realization, and I always walk away from the ocean knowing how small the matters I brought with me are.

An end-of-evening conversation about pushing forward through mundane times slowly transformed into thoughts about life, what’s owed, what’s deserved, and what’s reality. I can’t say my life is free from entitlement, and I’m sure the next time someone cuts me off in traffic, I’ll curse about always following the rules of the road and others being unfair. But at least, there’s always the ocean. There’s always a big, beautiful source of perspective waiting to humble us, our thoughts, and our beliefs.

And that is why I’m starting this week with a grateful heart ♥

{shared on Grateful Heart Monday link-up}