Giving Thanks In A Thankless World
Some Of My Blessings
I Am Giving Thanks Today
It’s that time of year again – the time when we all sit back and give thanks for all of the wonderful gifts in our lives. We all do it – at least during this time of the year. So here I go with my Thanksgivings…
As I drive to lunch each day, I inevitably pass one or two people who have their signs out begging for money. I don’t know their story. As someone just driving by, I assume that they might truly need money, but for what is the question. Do they truly need the money for food, as they say? Or will they use any money I give them for drugs or alcohol – or some other vice? So as I pass them, I send out a prayer for them. And I give thanks for having a job that pays me enough so that I can buy my family and I a decent meal three times a day.
I love my job. I’m living my dream – working with children – helping them grow – there can be no better job than that. I am thankful that each and every day I can go to work and do this job I love. I love looking for new lessons and finding new ways to teach these children that have difficulty learning.
As I teach my young students, I see young boys and girls that have so much difficulty in their lives. Children living in circumstances that no one should ever have to live in. Some who are abused, others who are neglected. As I watch them I give thanks that my own children did not have to live the way that they do. I give thanks that I was able to give them a decent life as they were growing up. It wasn’t perfect, but it was at least okay.
When I sit and talk with the other teachers after school, I hear horror stories of relationships gone bad. I hear teachers talk about ex-husbands who are still stalking them long after their divorce. I hear of these co-workers and friends of mine having fights and arguments with their husbands and wives and trying to decide whether or not they will divorce. I hear of these wonderful people having issues with their teenage children getting in trouble with the law and getting pregnant. I give thanks that my ex-husband – although he can be a jerk – doesn’t stalk me and doesn’t make my life miserable anymore. I thank God that my children made it through teenage-dom without trouble with the law or with any children of their own. I thank the good Lord above that I have a wonderful husband who loves me and grandchildren that think I am the best “Grammy” ever.
Sometimes when I drive downtown, I see people who have everything they own in a bag they carry along with them. I see them walking to the soup kitchen hoping to be one of the few that get a warm meal. I see the look of lost hope on their faces. Then I give thanks that I have a nice, warm home and the ability to have a warm meal whenever I am hungry. I see these people with colds, the flu and worse, and give thanks that I have access to medical care and can afford to pay a doctor when one is needed.
This is the time of year to give thanks. We need to remember to do this every day – not just on special occasions. We don’t have our blessings just once a year – why should we only give thanks on one special day?
