A very interesting story that I read in “My Grandfather’s blessings”  (more about the book here) was the author’s experience with a gifted cancer surgeon who suffered from depression. One of the ways to improve his condition was asking him to reflect on the events that happened during his day and to write down the answers to the following answers: “What surprised me today? What moved me today? What inspired me today?” The idea behind it was to relive the day from a new perspective and to find meaning and joy.

Initially his answers were “Nothing, nothing and nothing”. But gradually he started noticing more things around him that could answer these questions. At first he would only notice these things a few hours after they actually happened. But gradually the lag became less and less and he started building a capacity for the blessings around him. Most of the things that moved him and inspired him were related to his patients and their strength and determination to live.

This newly developed capacity not only helped him to overcome his depression, but also to connect better to his patients and listen not only to their medical complaints, but also to their hearts.

This beautiful story made me think about the discoveries that we are capable of making at any time by seeing the world with new eyes. It is true that sometimes it is best to get out of a situation. But there are many other times when we need to seek meaning with a new outlook and most importantly- with our heart, in order to rediscover and cherish what we have.

So go for it- try to find answers to these questions for the next week, see if and how things change and share your experiences!