In a time in South Africa when there is great disparity between those who have and those who don't; whether it be wealth, shelter, amenities or education, and South Africans are protesting and striking often; I find myself challenged by the concept of being content. The concept itself brings with it questions; questions such as: What does "being content" mean? Does that mean that I settle for what I have and where I find myself? Does that also mean I never seek to have more knowledge, better health, greater emotional awareness, more stuff? Is it a place of happy stagnation? Should I always be content in every situation and with every event in my life? Am I content now? Should I apply this broadly to my life or only to specific areas?

The meaning of being content according to a dictionary definition (www.thefreedictionary.com) is the following: "mentally or emotionally satisfied with things as they are; assenting to or willing to accept circumstances or a proposed course of action, etc; to make (oneself or another person) content or satisfied: to content oneself with property; peace of mind; mental or emotional satisfaction". This definition seems to imply that to be content, one is mentally and emotionally fulfilled and at peace; and satisfied with the things or stuff" we have or own. That contentment is also about being aligned with a projected plan for ourselves.

It is suggested by some that in order to discover contentment for ourselves we need to learn to see what we do have, to understand what we are grateful for, and to find a way to express our gratefulness. In other words gratitude and contentment are connected. Gratefulness is more than being thankful it is an appreciation and a sense of wonder for what we have. It is a practice we need to cultivate daily, allow it to become a ritual of though and expression in our lives.

We need to question ourselves as to whether we tend to be a pessimist, only seeing the negative, allowing negative events and circumstances to define us and our thoughts. If we are a pessimist we should try to find ways to promote optimism in our lives. This does not mean that we blindly deny the negatives we may have experienced, or are currently experiencing - we do acknowledge the difficulties and struggles but we need to try and not allow them to define who we are, or our futures. When things are difficult we need to ask ourselves if there is another way to see the situation. We also need to seek to learn from the experience and understand how that learning can be beneficial to us in the future.

Seek to find your unique purpose and avoid comparing yourself to others. There are always going to be those who seem to have "perfect lives", and those who have more and better "stuff" than you. If we understand what our purpose is we can align our goals and our daily activities to the achievement of that purpose.  Research suggests that relationships often present the greatest meaning and purpose for one's life. So it is possible that a way to find purpose in our lives is through the cultivation of meaningful relationships.

I do feel that as we see others struggling we should not be content to sit back and do nothing to bring what change we can to them. One of the paths to building relationship with others can be though helping them, and it is not difficult, in a country such as ours, to find people who need help of some sort. Help can take many forms, it means we need not only give of money or things, but it also suggests we give of our time, talent and of ourselves. Helping others allows us to freshly see and appreciate all that we do have and find contentment with it.

Learning to be content does not mean that we cease to learn, grow and discover. Being complacent is not the same as being content and there is much we can do to become a better person, not only for our own sakes but because we should be working to improve ourselves as we mature and work towards improving our relationships with others.

It is my hope that the above, which I suggest is not a complete guide to contentment or even answers all the questions in the opening paragraph, challenges your own thinking about contentment. That it encourages you to establish a definition of contentment, and in understanding what it means for you establish how you would achieve it. In closing, Socrates challenges us further by saying, "He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.”

References:
http://www.becomingminimalist.com/the-unmistakable-freedom-of-contentmen...
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/stress-management/in-depth/how-...
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/content