Today, as a nation, we remember and recall and rejoice in all for which we are thankful. Earlier this week, at the middle school in which I work, an after-school enrichment program asked the students to write one sentence describing their thankfulness. These eleven and twelve year old students were encouraged to think about all their blessings. Primarily, at this age, children have not the knowledge nor the experience to fully understand or even acknowledge their fortune. Their tutors led discussions preceding the production of the one sentence exercise. Then each student was given a strip of black paper and a piece of colored chalk.
The results of this creative art exercise have been displayed in the main corridor of the school. As one would expect there are a lot of sentences that simply read, “I am thankful for my family” or “I am thankful for the food I have to eat.” Working at a Title One school has helped to make me aware of the extent of poverty in our nation and the effects it has on young people. Children of parents struggling in poverty are often wiser than their more affluent peers. They recognize the blessings of basic necessities and are able to express them simply and gracefully. Amid the thankfulness sentences were expressions including gratefulness for culture, warm places to sleep, and clothing to wear.
In the midst of all the gratitude strips was one sentence that brought me great joy. This one five word sentence reminded me why I love middle school age children. And that reminded me of one of my many blessings this year. I am thankful for a job I enjoy, in a school filled with diverse and creative and caring children and adults. Not every child brings great joy, actually not every adult does either, but each one brings a unique perspective to my life. I am thankful for my experiences that come as a result of working at this school.
And that sentence? I am thankful for raccoons.
Under a blanket of snow 