Thank you

“If the only prayer you say in your whole life is ‘Thank you,” that would suffice.”

- Meister Eckhart

This week we move from the month of ghosts and spooks and things that go bump in the night, into the month of thankfulness. And, even in the context of this really beautiful time of year - the trees on fire with colorful leaves and the air so crisp, cool and fresh – “thankful” is sometimes a hard thing to remember to be.

“We count our miseries carefully, and accept our blessings without much thought,” a Chinese proverb states…so true, so much of the time!

How often do we nurse an old hurt, big worry or some concern carefully and oh! so attentively – at the expense of remembering how many things we have to be grateful for? Too often, is the answer for me. I can tell you, enthusiastically and in great detail, about the things on my “hurt and worries” list. I have to stop, breathe, focus and think to remember how consistently and generously well-blessed I am.

The other night was Halloween and Mr. Clark and I were giving out candy. I always like watching the parade of trick-or-treaters in their bright costumes - attentive parents with flashlights in hand, standing at the curb. I like to see what the kids are wearing and how they behave as they ask for and receive their candy.

We didn’t have as many young revelers as in years past, but the ones we had were in high spirits, and, in general, politer and more thankful than I remembered. A surprising number of them yelled, “Happy Halloween!” or a really joyful “Trick-or-Treat!” as they ran up our walk. And, almost all of them said a sincere “Thank you!” as they left.

Maybe the rain kept the sullen, non-costumed teenagers with pillow cases away, or maybe the tough economic times had everyone feeling a little cheerier about a hand-out. Either way, even the parents seemed more upbeat, friendly and thankful this year…

One little guy stands out in my mind. He looked to be four or five, and he was clearly an enthusiastic fellow, as we watched him come bouncing down the street and up to our house. He was dressed in red long johns and brown cowboy boots. His face was painted to look sort of like The Joker from Batman. He thanked us loudly and whole heartedly for the candy, and seemed to bubble over with energy and joy, as he stood there looking at our dogs, barking from inside the front door, the candles burning brightly inside our foyer, and the tall columns that dwarf our front porch.

“Wow!” he said, taking it all in, with a big smile on his face. Then, “Wow!” again. “I like your costume,” Mr. Clark said. “Are you The Joker?”

“No!” the little guy exclaimed, a bit indignantly. “I’m a Dead Clown!” His much quieter brother was standing next to him, wearing a thermal shirt, camouflage pants and a red clown nose.

“I’ve got his nose!” the brother proclaimed. Then they ran down the walk, into the night, once again calling, “Thank you!” and “Happy Halloween!”

Something about the little guy’s joy was infectious and, Mr. Clark and I laughed and laughed, for the rest of the evening, when one of us said, “Are you The Joker?” and, the other replied, “No! I’m a dead clown!” and, “I’ve got his nose!”

A year ago, Mr. Clark was unemployed and we had only a little bit of candy to hand out. We turned the porch light out early that Halloween night, and went to bed sad and worried about what lay ahead. This year, thankfully, Mr. Clark is employed again, and not only did the porch light stay on until our street fell quiet, but there was plenty of candy to go around, with even a little leftover. And, we went to bed feeling happy, thankful and well blessed.

Prayer is so important, as is faith and thankfulness and, cliché as it sounds, those are the things that bring us through the tough times, when joy and ease are hard to come by. There are still a lot of people out of work in our country, and a lot of folks have worries that are looming pretty large as this holiday season approaches…For my part, I will try to be generous of spirit and remember to be thankful, even when the temptation to count my miseries strikes.

I think bringing the image of that joyful, thankful, enthusiastic little “Dead Clown” (as well as his quieter brother, sporting the clown nose) to mind will help me remember that if I had only one prayer to pray, a joyous “Thank you!” would be enough.