Let Thanks Be Always on Our Lips!

Sometimes I get a tremendous surprise when I open a book. Tucked inside will be a letter from the past from a family member or friend. This week, I looked in my calendar book to see whose birthdays and anniversaries are coming up in the month of September. But what I found in the front was a little treasure from one of my granddaughters -- a letter she wrote on January 11, 2019 when she was still in high school. It captured a moment from the past to thrill a grandparent's heart.

This special grandchild has always excelled in the virtue of gratitude. We have never done anything for her without receiving thanks. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say the gift of gratitude equals or is even greater than the physical gift given. How much it warms the heart when the one gifted gives thanks. Which reminds me of Jesus when he asked the cured leper who came back to give thanks, "Where are the other nine?" Jesus obviously valued the virtue of gratitude and it grieved His heart not to find it in those He cured. Do we give thanks for the many gifts God gives us?

Please say a prayer for this wonderful young woman who is sharing her musical talent by teaching youngsters at a Catholic school. I hope they and their parents thank her.

When I called her to ask if I could put her lovely letter on my blog, she told me about her plans for teaching liturgical music and having her students attend adoration, combining sacred music with quiet prayer time. Wasn't it St. Augustine who said, He who sings well prays twice? What a blessing for her students.

But see for yourself what a special young woman she is. This letter is definitely a keeper:

January 11, 2019

Dear Grandma and Paka

First off I would like to apologize for sending this so late. I meant to write it the week after your visit but what with The  Promise and school and all it got forgotten. But better late than never, right? 

Thank you for the thoughtful gift of the treasure box. I've had boxes before but none so beautiful as this one. In the past, I've held normal everyday-use kind of things in these boxes, but with yours I decided to do something different. I have dedicated it to be my memory box. 

Every special letter I have received, every little trinket that has a specially memory associated with it, goes into the box. So I guess you could say all of my treasures. I especially love the roses. 

As much as I like the treasure box, it is not my favorite gift you gave me. Thank you for coming to our play. It really means a lot to me that you would drive four hours each way to stay for less than 48 hours just to see us perform. We've only been in three plays and you have been there for each one.

When people talk about their grandparents, they might talk about the presents they receive, the money they got, or things like that. For me, it's about the time. Time is a valuable thing and I love how your are always ready to give it away. Some of the best memories I have of you guys are things like sitting around the table playing cards, eating a home cooked meal with cookies for dessert, and you guys driving eight hours to see a two-hour play. 

Gifts are nice to get but my favorite gift is just spending time with you. So thank you for always being ready to give me that. I love you,

Love, 

[Name]

These things can't be bought with money.

P.S. No, I am not just writing this because of the talk we had about the importance of thank you notes. 😊 I wanted to give you some of my time since you always give me yours.

After I read this, I spent the rest of the day smiling and thanking God for this delightful 
granddaughter and all of our other many grandchildren. The nuclear family is often used an image of the Trinity. The extended family gives a wonderful image of the body of Christ with all the many divergent personalities. So many gifts! So many blessings! We have five grandchildren at Virginia Tech this year and hope to go down to take them all out for lunch this fall and bring them each a jar of honey from our amazing and abundant honey harvest.

Thank you, Lord, for family. Thank you for all your gifts, especially the gift of physical life and for redeeming us from spiritual death into friendship with You. May we spend every day and those times at night when we are sleepless thanking You for everything. And as a dear priest suggested in confession, let us all "kill the spirit of complaining."

When was the last time you expressed appreciation for a gift or a blessing? I once knew a priest who kept someone's letter of appreciation in his prayer book. That tells you something very important. Saying thank you may be the best gift someone ever receives, special enough to keep it close. And if you've neglected to say thanks to someone who is no longer here to receive it, ask your guardian angel to carry the thank you to your loved one. Guardian angels are better mail carriers than the Pony Express or the U.S. Postal Service!