Gratitude can help us navigate this upside-down world

This year has been so bleak for so many, but being thankful can help us cope with the worst in life, writes Bel Trew

My home city of Beirut has suffered more than most this year (Getty)

Growing up, one of the most irritating ways my grandmother would chastise us when we were sad was saying we should be thankful for what we’ve got. It always felt like a backhanded method to shame and silence, to add guilt to the mix.

But after 2020, I see what she was trying to get at.

It is not that we need to flog ourselves with the guilt of feeling upset because others are much worse off. But that we need to cling to the lifebuoy of truly cherishing what we do have.