Lucille's

THANKSGIVING UNSTUFFED

Does it not strike you as extremely odd that we need to set aside a day to be thankful?

Luxury such as most of us experience is beyond most of the world’s comprehension.

 Being able to provide a meal for one’s family in a third world country is cause for deep satisfaction and gratitude. It takes hard physical labour to source food and extreme patience to cook over a fire with few utensils. There is a ravenous hunger to be satiated by rice and beans yet again.

We on the other hand expect to eat….and often…..but certainly not leftovers. Our palates crave new and different dishes every day….and perhaps something out of season…and then of course, our gourmet coffee in between. If we are feeling tired or just plain lazy or needing to be pampered we hie off to a restaurant of our choice and eat too much and complain about the service. We drive there in one of our cars all toasty with our heaters blasting or cool as cucumbers with our AC cranked up high.

How strangely they would view us, outfitting our dogs in expensive little outfits while their children, flesh of their flesh just like yours and mine go without. How they would gasp while peering into our closets, crammed to the rafters with items we hardly ever wear. How inconceivable that we would complain about doing laundry, when it’s a walk downstairs and the push of a button instead of a 3 mile trek with a heavy load, no detergent and dirty water and then lugging it all home again.

I luxuriate in my hot bubble bath at night, step out onto the heated floor and dry myself with a thick white towel before cozying up under my down quilt tastefully coordinated in colours of my choosing and wonder what it’s like to sleep on the cold hard ground with rain trickling through my make-shift shelter and the sound of mortar shells exploding around me while my children cry because their tummies are screaming from hunger.

For me, morning comes and coffee aroma fills the air with a flip of a switch.  I open and close fridge and cupboards, trying to decide what I want to eat. I have choice. I wander around my home and hear their incredulous accusing voices….”All this for two people?”

We bemoan the fact we are out of bottled water while the purest water in the world cycles through our toilets and dishwashers and washing machines.

Our children go off to school at government expense….It is our right!

We go into retirement supplemented by pension cheques and spare body parts freely dispersed to aid us in living our lives of leisure and ease.

Ours is a land of wide open spaces, untouched by the ravages of war and famine and neglect. Beauty is everywhere and we have the means and resources to travel and enjoy its many wonders.

I will get up and casually drive to my place of worship on Sunday. I will freely lift my voice in song and praise, unafraid and yes, ungrateful. I will take it for granted, perhaps complain at the length of sermon or the choice of song while others around the world demonstrate true devotion as they serve God in the face of imprisonment or death.

The difference between us and them is need versus expectation. When they have a need and it is met they are joyful and grateful. We on the other hand need little but want so much. We have expectations of how our lives should look and so we are often disappointed. Yes, we face tragedy or heartache at times too but we are surprised by it not waiting for the inevitable.

I struggle to understand the favour I have been granted….why God chose to place me in a land of plenty and ease.

I cannot fathom it.

And so I am left with acceptance and a response.

As I prepare for Thanksgiving, decking out my house, preparing my menu, choosing the table settings, creating my clever place cards and lovingly cooking and baking for family, I pause….and this is my prayer….

Lord,

 Cause me to look your way while I bask in the sheer abundance and peace I enjoy today and every day.

Allow me a glimpse into your heart and mind to see both your compassion for those who struggle and your sadness when I voice complaint.

Move my eyes more often to tears.

Open my hands to release the things I hold dear and my pocketbook to bless others.

Move my feet to people and places of your choosing.

Bend my knee in prayer.

Humble me.

Teach me about this thing called Thanksgiving.