Thanksgiving reminds me of a phrase I heard awhile back “Attitude of Gratitude.” On some bright sunny days when I am working in the gardens it is easy to feel ‘gratitude’. When I was in a situation of suffering and poverty, like Haiti, gratitude seems so remote. But often the people experiencing the poverty are full of gratitude for what little they have.
I remember the gratitude in the faces of the children at a local food program at the What If Foundation in Haiti. The What If Foundation was formed in 2000 by an American volunteer in Haiti and an Haitian priest who have a vision of a program to feed the children in his community. Now the foundation feeds about a thousand children each day with a large bowl of a healthy food.
The children are full of gratitude for the meal. While waiting for the food, a large bowl of rice and beans the day we were present, the children saw us ‘white folks’ with our digital cameras. They all wanted us to notice them and maybe take a picture and show it to them. It was a joy being with them and to feel the gratitude they expressed.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and most children and adults in this country will sit down for a large meal of turkey and all the fixings. We will say our thanks and eat as much as we can. However, our attitude of gratitude seems so much less than that of the children of Haiti.
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