“It could be worse.”
There are two ways to look at this phrase. On one hand, it’s meant to be a show of gratitude. We say it to acknowledge that although something isn’t ideal, we’re grateful for the blessings that it does carry.
On the other hand, we can use this phrase to self-soothe and settle. We say it to feign contentment with the way things are.
Generally speaking, “it could be worse” means “it could be better.” When it comes to the quality of your life, there’s nothing worse than feeling like you’re living smaller than your capabilities.
So don’t.
Being thankful for being in a particular state doesn’t mean you have to stay in it. As always, it’s your choice.
very interesting. I always thought of the phrase “it could be worse” as a way in which we make our selves feel better about a situation that we are in that is not how we anticipate it turning out. “it could be worse” does not take away from the down side effect of the situation at hand, but i guess it does either of two things: the first, if we truly mean it (the phrase “it could be worse”) then it serves as freeing us of the burden of the less than ideal outcome of the situation. the second, if we dont actually mean the phrase, it just makes us look to our peers/friends AS IF we are thinking positively, but in fact we are still frustrated why our situation is not how we envisioned or wanted it to be. its a balance i suppose.
Also, I remember someone once told me, “be wary of what you complain about, because God may send you an actual calamity to show what an actual calamity looks and feels like”. interesting view i guess. sort of like a reminder to try to be grateful as much as possible even when things arent 100% like wed like them to be.