Remembering: To say thanks!

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By Doris Schroeder

Looking back a few decades, I remember so well when my Kindergarten teacher in the white frame building of Allen School, taught us five-year-olds some of the manners of that day. “When someone gives you something, you should always say thank you!” We learned to say it when we were handed our little bottle of milk and graham crackers and other items of learning.

Later, as we took our rugs, put them on the floor, and closed our eyes, she played a hymn on the piano, “Blest Be the Tie That Binds.” All through the years, every time I hear that song I feel a sense of peace. I feel thankful for her teaching. She had also been my sister Luella’s teacher two years earlier, before Luella was accidentally shot and killed. She was a very understanding and compassionate teacher who took her work seriously. I could feel her care and it helped me through a difficult time.

The way the world is spinning today, there are times we don’t feel like being grateful. In other ways, we have had so many things given to us in our lives; we take them for granted. As we approach  Thanksgiving Day this week  Thursday, perhaps we should stop and count our blessings.

I’m thankful for the real estate tax bill that has come. It means we still live in a free capitalistic society and that we know we can enjoy the freedom to own our house or not…it is up to us and how hard we work at it.

I’m thankful for my ancestors who came from Germany, via Russia, and for their strong desire to live in a unique country that is like no other place in the world.

I am glad they had the determination to see it through even though it must have been extremely hard, losing two of their sons on the trip over and then  to learn a new culture and a new language. Because of my great -grandparents, grandparents and my parents, I have been able to enjoy all the benefits of living in this land and I love America.

I’m thankful for all the specialized doctors we have for the different ailments that come along as we get older. Even though we sometimes gripe at all the appointments, still we know that things are done for our best interests. I am thankful for our present system of health insurance and how it usually takes care of what we need.

I am thankful for the news we hear on the TV. It means we are still living in a free country and although we may have to switch news channels, we know we will hear both sides of the things that are going on. We are not in a communist country where we are not allowed to hear what we need to know.

I am thankful for the newspapers we have the privilege to read. Most papers still print both sides of the questions and it is up to us to decide which side we want to believe.

I am thankful for all the friends I have and that I can share with them and they with me. Thinking back to this year’s Farmer’s Market, I loved meeting many of the people of the Midwest and hearing their thoughts on the coming presidential election and their allegiance to the United States. They laughed with me when I showed them my first-prize painted gourds from the fair. I had painted Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton and stood them on a platform with the American flag and the words “Vote.“  Now, later God brought a surprise for us.  We can say with confidence that God has been with us. It helps us as we face the uncertain future now and we know how He answers prayer.

I am thankful for the opportunity to worship God as I please. It is such a blessing to be able to attend the Medora Community Bible Church and hear God’s word proclaimed and know it is the truth being preached.

I am thankful I have a real, live God to worship and because I have accepted him into my life, I have the freedom to follow him and share with others. I have the joy of prayer and know that He hears me.

I am thankful for my husband and that I have someone to share life with. It is a tremendous blessing to be able to depend on each other.

As Thanksgiving looms on the horizon, we still have much we can be grateful for, including you as my readers. I would love to hear from you and what it is you are thankful for at this time.

I Thessalonians 5:18, written in the Bible, tells us “in everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

And so, my friends, let’s remember to say thanks!

Doris welcomes your comments and can be reached at [email protected]

           

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