last night, my wife and i stopped through a cheap but decent little airport motel on our way home from the great white north. there was a denny’s right next door so we decided it was as good a place as any to grab a quick bite so we didn’t wake up ravenously hungry at 4 a.m. i get cranky enough waking up that early without adding in a dose of pitted stomach.
at the booth next to us was a family of four with two young girls who were probably around two and four years old. as we passed them to take our seat, i couldn’t help but notice their table was piled high with plates of what looked to be one of everything on the menu. there was an aura of contagious joy radiating from them. i couldn’t help but smile at the little girl sittting in her booster seat at the end of the booth and she giggled as she ate her grapes.
i overheard the man i presumed to be the girls’ father saying, “i am so thankful for this thanksgiving dinner together,” and something inside me shattered. i was stunned, and completely taken by the pure innocence of this young family; at how they were able to enjoy something so simple and humble as a thanksgiving dinner at denny’s. i realized that as thankful as i am, it is not nearly thankful enough.
but i don’t want to give the wrong impression. when i saw this family so humbly packing up their stack of to-go boxes, when i saw the mother sniff her youngest daughter’s wet bottom and laugh about it smelling like grapes, and when i saw the father stand up on his crutch like a grown-up tiny tim, proclaiming proudly that he had brought his wallet 3 and would take the check, i did not feel pity for them. i felt humbled to be allowed to witness such a display of what the holiday season is all about.
no matter what level of having or not having we may all be experiencing at any given moment, it is so crucial that we take the time to appreciate those who are a part of our lives, that we appreciate those things that we can attain, and that we lay down all thoughts of moreishness that plague our minds with the drive to fill our stores for winter.
so let me take one more moment to say thank you. i will never have everything i want from a material perspective, but from a spiritual, emotional and familial perspective, my cup runneth over, and my joy is full. thank you to that family, whoever they were, for reminding me of all of the lessons of the nativity, the christmas story, and all the other heart-melting tales that have been immortalized by hollywood. i thank them for reminding me that those stories are happening around us in real time every day. you’ve truly made me a happier man.