Daily Gratitude: Most of the time other people are better able to express things than I can. Today is one of them. This comes from Brian Johnson’s excellent book, Arete. “As Tal Ben-Shahar also tells us: "The word appreciate has two meanings. The first meaning is ‘to be thankful, the opposite of taking something for granted. The second meaning is ‘to increase in value’ (as money appreciates in the bank). Combined, these two meanings point to a truth that has been proved repeatedly in research on gratitude: when we appreciate the good in our lives, the good grows and we have more of it. The opposite, sadly, is also true: when we fail to appreciate the good—when we take the good in our lives for granted— the good depreciates."