Christian Reflection and Prayer

Think you've got nothing to be thankful for?
Just sit down here and think again.
By Bob Perks

"I have so much to be thankful for.
I wouldn't know where to begin," she said.
I wouldn't know either. As I looked around
her home, I couldn't find a thing that she could include.
I have discovered that the friendliest, most welcoming
people in the world are those who have little in the way
of material things to offer. What they lack in
possessions they make up for in spirit and love.
Some years ago I had been working for the
Commission on Economic Opportunity. It was
the year following a devastating flood in Pennsylvania.
My job was to interview low-income families and assess
their needs. Up until that moment I thought I had seen it
all. The odd thing was I was looking at nothing at all,
and this woman was thankful.
The home, though technically out of the flood area,
looked like it had been a part of the destruction.
The front porch steps were missing, replaced by a
few cinder blocks and planks. There were several
broken windows, and part of the foundation had
caved in, exposing the basement to the weather.
That particular day it was in the upper 30s with
a strong wind blowing. Snow was predicted
by nightfall. Thanksgiving Day was approaching,
and quite frankly my heart was not into doing these
surveys. Like many others, I just wanted to start
my holiday early. This was the last stop for me.
Tomorrow like millions of other families we
would be gathered around the table filling ourselves
to capacity. Oddly I hadn't even thought about
what this family was looking forward to. I just
figured they would be taken care of by some
organization or church. I looked around the
kitchen for some sign of a charitable box of
goodies but saw nothing there. The house was bitter
cold. The young children ran several times through
the kitchen playing, laughing like any other kids.
I happened to notice that they were barefoot on
this cold linoleum floor. At one point I said to
one of the youngest girls, "You should go put
your socks and shoes on before you get sick."
She replied, "Mommy, did this man bring me
some shoes I can wear?" "No, Sissy. He didn't.
Go put on a pair of mine. He's right--you need
something on your feet." I was embarrassed for
having put her in that position. "Well, I'm finished here.
Thank you for your time. I hope you have a wonderful
...." I didn't know what to say. How could they
possibly have a wonderful anything?
"Look, I'm sorry. I know there must not be much
to be thankful for these days," I said nervously.
"Well, you certainly are wrong about that!" she said
emphatically. Then, rising to her feet, she walked into
the living room and stood in the middle.
"My dear, I am truly blessed for all of this.
I know it doesn't look like much. But who made
the rules that say that we can only be thankful for
things that cost money? "Sit here on this chair," she
told me. "That chair may be worthless even to a
junk dealer. But I sat in that chair and waited for
months when my son was in the service. That was
my worry chair. I sat in that chair, prayed and gave
thanks when the good Lord brought him safely
home to me. It was in that same chair I was sitting
when my daughter came home from school and
told me she was going to college ‘cause she got a
full scholarship. It was my joyful chair.
It was also in that chair that I sat holding my daddy's
hand when he died. They had sent him home telling
us there was nothing more they could do. He wanted
to be at home. We put the chair next to his bed, and
I ate, slept, and cried as I sat in that chair holding his
hand. He was all the world to me when I was growing
up. I owed him that much.
"So how much is that chair worth in dollars? Nothing.
But I wouldn't trade it for anything," she said.
Then walking over to a picture on the wall she said,
"You see this man? He's the man that has loved me
for all these years. He's at work now. He doesn't make
much, but he works hard for it. He paid for that chair
in sweat. How much money value do I put on him?
There isn't enough money in all the world for the true
value of love."
"Those kids running around the house. Yeah, maybe
someone would say I'm not a good parent. But you
go and ask them if they love their mommy and daddy.
Then tell me how much that is worth," she said.
Then she added, "I'm thankful for my sight, I am
thankful that I have good health, considering everything
else. I am thankful for my faith. Oh, how thankful
I am that I have something to believe in. I am thankful
for the second-hand quilt the lady down the street gave
me yesterday."
She gestured toward the other room. "Do you hear that
laughter? I'm thankful my kids are playing and laughing
like other kids in the neighborhood. How much would you
pay to find something to laugh about when things aren't so good?
There is so much I am thankful for that most people take
for granted," she said. I stood up and picked up my briefcase.
It was time to go.
She walked over to the chair I'd just vacated and sat down,
adding, "So now I call this my 'Thankful Chair.' Tomorrow
when we gather round the table to share whatever meal God
will provide--and he always provides--I will be thankful that
He sent you here to talk to me," she said, smiling.
I knew then that, in addition to making my report to the state,
I would be coming back with a pair of shoes and socks, as
well as some other ingredients for a happy Thanksgiving.
"Thanks for sharing your 'Thankful Chair' with me," I said
, walking out the door. "I believe one day I will find that priceless."
I was right.