A reason to be thankful

Thanksgiving day is almost here! As I list my reasons for gratitude, I do not want to forget those most important in my life. A recent scene brought this to mind.

I was setting up for the service one Sunday when a young man in uniform came in to review his readings. He had just returned home from duty, and was flanked by his dad and two younger brothers. As I watched the boys in the sacristy, I was deeply touched by the youngest brother. As his military brother stood against the counter reviewing the readings, the younger brother went over to stand next to him. He stayed there, his body very close to his older brother, content to be near. Then he reached up to place his arms around his brother's shoulders, and held it there for several seconds. As he did so, he looked up at  his brother, his face literally radiant and happy. The gesture, so spontaneous, so natural, filled with emotion, moved me deeply. I could not help but think, how wonderful for brothers to be so close.

The memory of that incident stays with me this week as I prepare for Thanksgiving. It makes me want to be sure to include every single loved ones in my prayer of gratitude. Too often I take them for granted.


Let us count all of our blessings this Thanksgiving. Let our gratitude not forget those we may sometimes take for granted. Let our prayer of thanksgiving be a hug that spans distances, and sends warmth and appreciation over the miles. Let us build a loving family.

Loss and gratitude

Since last evening, the news is concentrating on one man, Steve Jobs. A man who changed many things in our world, yes. But why do we wait until a person passes before we honor them in this way? It does make one wonder.

I have a great friend who still lives in the monastery. She used to refrain from speaking at a sister's funeral because, as she said with passion, it was more important say kind words when that sister could still hear you. She said to me repeatedly, "Don't give me flowers after I'm dead and can't see them. If you want to give or say something nice about me, do it now when I can appreciate it."

I've profited from such thoughts. It makes me think that we tend to appreciate things more after we lose them than when we are able to enjoy them. It reminds me of a quote from Therese of Lisieux, who said that she received countless blessings after she developed a habit of continual gratitude. And an attitude of gratitude would bring us into the here and now.

Such thoughts always prompt me to re-evaluate my life and try to see what I'm taking for granted. Do I have something that is a blessing? Can I not appreciate it fully and completely now? Can I make thanksgiving a daily part of my prayer? Do I have to wait to to lose before I see my blessings?

It's a habit worth developing.

The Imperfect Gift

Buttons, my imperfect gift

This morning, as I bent down to pet my cat, I thought of what a gift he's been for me these past 13 years. He came into my life when he was found in the leaves, abandoned by his mother, a kitten of perhaps four or five weeks. He was scrawny, full of fleas, ear mites, and undernourished. At the time I was living at the monastery in MA. I nourished him, got him his shots, cleaned him up, and became his surrogate "mom". He's been with me ever since, through five moves and four states. He still sleeps on my feet most nights, loves to greet me when I return home, and continues to show remarkable energy for a 13 year old.

Yet, he is far from perfect. His mother having been a ferral cat, he still has strains of the wild in him. I never know when it will hit him to attack me for no apparent reason. I've learned the warning signs and can usually flee before it happens.He is also a very aloof cat, has never come to sit on my lap and will only allow me to hold him for about 7 seconds.

Yet, he is my gift. And as I left him this morning, and thought about all the above, I realized that our gifts don't have to be perfect to be appreciated. For whatever reason (and I'm not going to philosophize here) most gifts God gives us are imperfect. I think we need to accept that fact, or perhaps, even expect it.

An imperfect gift is still a gift. Maybe its God's way of helping us see life in the same manner. To concentrate on what is good instead of complaining about what is not. For I know few gifts that are perfect. But I know many imperfect gifts I would not want to lose.