GIVING THANKS

“In every thing give thanks:

for this is the will of God,

in Christ Jesus, concerning you.”

         We have all grown up being constantly reminded by our parents, our teachers and our friends of these very meaningful words of advice originally given by St. Paul in Chapter 5:18 of his first letter to the people of the city of Sardonica (Tessalonica), the capital of Macedonia. But how many of us have taken the time or made the effort to do so for the countless situations when we should be truly giving thanks for the sincerity and the efforts of others. How many of us have stopped what we are doing or thinking, to show appreciation for what others have done for, or said to us, especially at those times when we most needed their help, and to express our gratitude for what was done or said to us. The answer to all of these questions for all of us is a resounding “Not enough of us!”

         As we approach Thanksgiving Day, a day that was especially set aside in North America to remind us of this responsibility since the early days of the Puritans more than 6 centuries ago, recent events that had befallen my nephew have once again reminded me (as if I needed to be reminded), of the truth in those words;

“IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS.”

 I would be neglecting my sacred responsibilities if I did not join the rest of my family in expressing our sincere appreciation and gratitude to every one who so kindly assisted in his recovery.

We should take time to offer our sincerest gratitude to the treating physicians and surgeons, who’s relentlessly dedicated and committed efforts secured what could easily have been a disastrous outcome, into one of hope and joy. And the dedicated ICU nursing and ancillary staff whose tireless efforts and determined attention kept strict control on his unpredictable and volatile condition. We tend to take these people for granted and assume that because they are fully trained then what they do is just routine and simple. But this is so much far from the truth, and I know this from my decades as an active physician who I spent my full share in ICUs and other hospital floors. They deserve much more attention than we give them and certainly more gratitude for their work than they receive.

But there are so many others whose caring and support go a long way to making this very difficult and testing period a little bit easier. A few of these readily come to mind, not because they were critically involved in treating, but rather in simply providing a helping hand when it was needed. You can see it happening all the time and the resulting effects are immeasurable. Actions like the parking attendant who pauses to retrieve a wheelchair from the trunk of a car then patiently helped a disabled patient out of the car and into it. Then asking him if he needed anything else! And the security guard who took time from his duties to pray with a distraught family member and offer some encouragement. Or the kind gentleman who took time from his own appointment to help a confused couple to find the right floor before returning to his appointment. It is these and all the countless acts that take place every minute of every day, however unsolicited, that deserve to be rewarded but go unnoticed. Perhaps this is why the great German theologian and Philosopher, Meister Eckhart, who lived in the 13^th century, so eloquently advised:

“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was: "Thank you," -that would suffice.”                

But expressing gratitude is much more than just saying thank you to some one who has helped you. To be truly effective, it must arise from the deepest level of your heart and must carry a genuine sense of appreciation and thankfulness, strong enough to remain indelibly imprinted. As a physician, I have witnessed this so often in people who have recovered from very serious, life threatening illnesses. It is as if the event has jolted them into the realization that there but for the intervention of others, they would have ended disastrously. Under these circumstances it was never difficult to feel the sincerity that emanated. But unfortunately, rather than learn from the experience, many quickly revert to their former selves after the period has passed.

This however, should not be the case for any one of us. Man was never designed to exist alone, but to share and interact with others. And to do so effectively, requires that we must help one another and accept help from one another. But this should never imply that all should be taken for granted but rather that we take the time to acknowledge and appreciate one another, and be always ready to extend our help under any circumstances. We therefore must be aware of this responsibility in everything we do, remember to be appreciative of others who share our space and above all, learn to live by them. Perhaps when we achieve this level of behavior, we will appreciate the wisdom of these words by John F. Kennedy, the 35^th President of the United States:

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that

the highest appreciation is not to utter the words, but to live by them.”

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