This world teaches us many lessons. One I find both sad and demoralizing is where we are told every day: We need the latest and greatest toys. If we don't have them, we are nothing. While I could rant at great length about the message advertisers and corporations spread to us daily, I will instead share a list of everyday blessings of which I'm certain the majority of my readers enjoy, while not even realizing what blessings they are...
Clean Running Water - Hot is a Bonus!
When we take a shower, or run our toothbrushes under a faucet, do we consider the blessing we have. It's something many never consider a blessing.
We take it for granted that it will always be there. We don't think about it until something major happens that takes it away, and we find ourselves in line at the local shelter or water distribution point with containers in hand...
Many in this world do not need to wait for a disaster; it's part of their daily lives. Some are in remote corners of the world; but some are right in our neighborhood. There are whole families living in vans with no running water.
Roof over Our Head - Dry is a Bonus!
When we see it pouring rain outside, do we remember the blessing we have right over our head? Unless we experience its loss, we may not realize what a blessing it truly is.
Some loose their roof due to financial reasons, others through fires, floods or natural disasters. Many lost it through no fault of their own.
Even when there is a roof, it may not be dry; roof repairs are costly. In a tight market, it's a choice between food and the leaky roof. Sometimes it's a matter of waiting for the insurance company to get around to sending the check - months after the disaster. Even small leaks can lead to big problems when mold and wood rot set in.
Food on the Table - Nutritious is a Bonus!
When we sit down to our next meal, or even "take it on the run", do we understand the blessing before us?
Food is a resource we cannot live without. The fact we can eat foods "out of season" any time day or night in most corners of the world is an amazing blessing of our day. Refrigeration and freezers are an added blessing to help keep leftovers beyond the next morning. Otherwise the food would be inedible - even dangerous to consume.
Yet, there are many without food. There are many more whose only food is the cheap stuff that holds little nutritional value. In fact, the healthy food is often the most expensive food in the market! When did chips become cheaper than cold cuts?
A conversation I recently overheard brings this blessing to light. One person was complaining that a recent storm made him late driving home from work, so he he ended up eating dinner late that night. A friend of his replied, "Hang in there buddy... it's worse when you're trying to make dinner over a can fire in an alleyway... (I've done that)."
A Bed to Sleep in - Warm is a Bonus!
When we lay our heads down to rest, do we count where we lay a blessing? There are places where it's too noisy to sleep. Some people must deal with pests chewing on them where they rest. Some, have no place to lay their head at all...
For those that do have a bed, how many lack clean bedding? Or lack the comfort of heat in their home so their teeth chatter as they shiver under the blankets?
How many people face this question each year: "Where will we sleep tonight?"
Ability to Read - Reading this Blog is a Bonus!
How often do we appreciate the ability to read? How often have we thought about it outside of school or watching kids learn to read?
Literacy is truly a blessing many take for granted. To some, even in our own town, reading this text is as difficult as reading the bar code to the left. That's the bar code, not the numbers below it! Can you read the product number, price and other information that's there? I can't.
As to reading this blog as a bonus, I am not getting narcissistic. I mean having the ability to get online, go to this website and read it. Whether we use a public access computer, a work connection, computer in our home, or one of those hand-held tools that enable you to read this website from anywhere - it's an added blessing! In the US and abroad, there is an ever-widening gap of the technical divide. Those who have and those who will be left behind. Already I've been excluded from store sales because I do not have a smart phone to read the funky squares.
How much do we exclude our brothers and sisters when they don't have these blessings? How much do we ignore the people who struggle to complete a job application - many of which are online?
The Toilet - Flushing is a Bonus!
Yes! The toilet!
No matter how little space we have, most of my readers likely have one of these (if not more than one) in their homes.
I consider this a blessing even when it doesn't flush, such as the portable or pit toilets. There are parts of the world where they don't have the luxury to actually SIT there, where one needs better aim for all needs at a hole in the corner of the room.
Even those facilities may be considered a blessing compared to the open-air latrine ditches others must use. While I've had to hike to a location with a spade or hide behind bushes in an emergency, I don't HAVE to relieve myself that way every time.
There is truly a blessing hidden behind that door.
Heat in Cold - Air Conditioning in Summer
How often do we count our blessings when we walk in from a cold day into a warm house? Many of us may even have the luxury of air-conditioning in the summer heat. If not, at least there may be a fan to help move around the air so it's not so hot to our skin.
We would be surprised at how many of our neighbors have to decide between heating or cooling their home and having food to eat. We cannot live without food.
Each summer, I hear news stories of people who succumb to the heat and die. In the winter, there are many who face their last day in an icy abode under what covers they have.
Do we even think about these things when we fight over the thermostat with our co-workers?
Our Five Senses - All of them is a Bonus!
Do we count our senses as blessings? Our sight? Our hearing? Our ability to experience scents? Our ability to taste what's inside our mouth? Our ability to touch something with our hands and skin?
Do we feel the breeze touch our skin or play with our hair? Do we pause to wonder at what meets our eyes or ears? Do we savor the wistful scent of burning wood or barbeque? Do we stop to experience the hot or cold sensation and explosion of taste in our mouth as we chew or swallow?
We experience life every day through our senses; they are each a blessing.
Our Sense of Humor - Ability to Laugh at Ourselves is a Bonus!
I have no doubt God laughs; Christ has exhibited a sense of humor too. It's something God shares with His creations - with us! And it is a blessing.
Smiles and laughter are universal; it's something we all share, regardless of our diverse languages and cultures. Many a tense situation can be diffused though shared laughter.
We also have within us the ability to laugh at ourselves. This life is way too short to take ourselves so seriously. Our "image" is such a hard and strenuous thing to maintain. We need to let go of what our ego (and advertisers) tell us we should look like, and just experience who we truly ARE. Let our inner light out and share our laughter with the world.
In doing so, we share a sweet blessing too.
Our Friends - Best Friends are a Bonus!
Friendship helps us form bonds with others. They are our personal connection to the world. And they are a mirror by which we see ourselves, reflecting what we share - bright light or dark bitterness.
Friends are a blessing in our lives. They lift our spirits, help us through tough times, share in our laughter and in our tears. They share our lives.
A far greater blessing are friends that stay by our side when the rest leave.
I treasure this blessing far more than many realize. I was the outcast in school, with no friends at all. It was hard not to believe that I was worthless trash. I did believe it - for decades. Some start with no friends; others may end with no friends beside them.
Those who have had friends over a lifetime may never truly understand the blessing they have before them. A blessing we can always share. Someone in our neighborhood right now is completely alone. Do we reach out our hand?
Our Stories - Our Sharing
In this day of high-speed internet, smart-phones and high-definition television, we are deluged with entertainment and rapidly loose our recognition of an age-old blessing - sharing our stories.
Since we were sitting in caves sharpening flint, humanity has told stories to each other. Our stories have changed over the years, and how we tell them has changed. Some today still sit around a campfire or table. Others sit before a computer screen sharing their stories over a blog or other online means.
These are our lives that we share with others. These are what lives on when we can no longer speak.
Stories can even teach others; Christ used this. We may not remember lectures or speeches, but we will continue to re-tell good stories for generations to come.
Share your story; it's a blessing with wings.
- ESA
From what I read and understand, Yom Kippur is the Day of Penance/Reconciliation very much like our solemn Sacrament in the Church. We self-examine, discover what is wrong/keeping us from God, go to God, lay it on the table and ask for God's Forgiveness. God then Forgives us of our past transgressions, frees us from what keeps us apart (from God and each other), and enables us to receive God's Blessings during the Jewish year.
Posts
