The universal language of being very thankful

The festive season beckons, Christmas shopping’s in full flow, Tills ringing, carollers singing,

Children’s faces all aglow; Twinkling lights in shop windows,

Music, jollity and cheer, Take a break and just enjoy, This most special time of year.

It was a combination of all the bustle and a little carelessness, but Daniel tripped over his own bag in the airport.

The fall hurt his pride more than anything else, but...

“Four or five people helped me up and tried to make sure I was okay

I HOPE it’s no secret… but I like to help.

So when I was sitting on a busy bus I was preparing myself to stand. An older lady got on and looked for a seat – but a teenage gentleman beat me to it. A man with a crutch got on and a young lady stood for him. A woman with a child boarded and a man stood so they could sit together.

She must have noticed me start to stand each time and then slump back into my seat, because the woman behind me squeezed my shoulder.

“You know what the problem is,” she informed me. “There are just too many good people on this bus.”

I sighed and agreed. It’s a problem I find in most places. If I don’t get to help because so many others beat me too it, well... I will just have to live with it! – but not one of them spoke English. It was so annoying I couldn’t say thank you to any of them.”

“So, what did you do?” I asked.

“Oh, well, I shook hands with some and hugged another, and smile... but I wanted to say thank you!”

I am sure they got the message, Daniel, just like you did when they showed their concern.

Thankfully, in a world divided by cultures and languages there is a language that transcends all of that.

NATHAN is from the UK so Thanksgiving Day was never a part of his life – until he went to visit his daughter and son-in-law in the States.

The extended family all gathered at his son-in-law’s parents’ house where they enjoyed fine food and company.

Because it was Thanksgiving the matriarch of the family put up a whiteboard, gave the kids some pens and asked them to write what they were thankful for. The answers ranged from family, to the turkey dinner, to the internet, rainbows and even unicorns.

“It was a good laugh,” Nathan told me. “No one really fussed what the children were thankful for. All that mattered was that they were thankful.”

A thankful generation – the whole world could give thanks for that.