Give Thanks for the Little Things
by Jun Asis
Romy was irritated as he stood watching the tiles on his floor fixed.
His house was relatively new and he didn’t expect any major repairs this early. What compounded his annoyance was the shoddy work he was seeing. He was close to giving the workers an earful, so he decided to cool down to prevent an outburst. He got on his bike and pedalled his way around their neighborhood.
Soon, he reached the church and went inside. He sat down, and quietly listened. At that point, he sensed that God was telling him:
“Buti ka pa, tapos na bahay mo, samantalang Ako, 4 years na, wala pa ring pinto ang bahay Ko. Ang sahig Ko, wala pang tiles.”
“You are better off than I am. your house is already finished. Look at My house: Four years has passed and yet doesn’t have a door, not even a single tile on the floor.”
With that, his anger subsided. “Thank you Lord, for reminding me of what I have,” Romy prayed. He described his state after that as “nahimasmasan” (came to his senses.)
Many times, you often take the ordinary things for granted and pick on your pet peeves. This creates a demeanor of always complaining, of looking at the things that aren’t right. While we should not neglect the things that bother us, they shouldn’t be our main preoccupation.
Often, we only give thanks about big things and fail to see the blessings that are ordinary. We thank the Lord for our bonus but maybe not for the small discount we got from the store. We thank God when we get healed of dengue, but not for getting up in the morning. We thank our spouse when they give us a nice birthday gift yet often fail to thank them for food they prepared, the times they drove us to work, or for making sure that we do not get wet in the rain.
Say “Thank you Lord!” for the sun, for the internet, for the cool weather, for your eyes, for little things like coffee, the air and your hair.
Express your thanks for the seemingly trivial, for the everyday things that people do for you. Thank the people for the effort they put: even if they are paid for it and specially, if they are not.
Some days back, I asked a group to think of the ordinary things that the ones closest to their heart has done for them. Then, I told them to send a text message to thank them for that deed. They were initially hesitant but did it anyway.
They got different replies.
One got “Is this message missent?” from her mother. One’s husband texted back “Is everything all right?” I think one got a “Hu u?” Just kidding.
But for most, they got back “thank yous” and appreciative “welcomes”.
No matter how the return texts were, I am sure that the people from both sides of the SMS had a better day.
So today, I would like to ask you to do two things:
First, thank God for some blessing that you take for granted such as the ability to walk, talk, play, being able to read,
coming to work on time or having something to eat this morning.
Second, think of the one dearest to you and send them a text message, phone call or email of thanks for a specific ordinary thing they have done.
Do it now.
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Just another inspirational story I read. It’s so good to hear and feel that someone appreciates you.
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