Gratitude

My word for the week is "gratitude." It just seems like this week has been full of events that have caused me to stop and thank God for my life and my family. It almost seems unfair that my life can be this good while so many people are going through so much. I know that God has chosen a path for each of us and He uses our experiences for His purpose, but for some of the students that I've talked to this week, life has been nothing but hard from day one. Its easy for me to understand why they are so hopeless. However, I know that God has put them in my path so that I can help them. He has also put them in my path so they can help me. This week they have helped me to be much less whiny about my life and to stop, take a breath, and count my blessings. So, here is my list of this week's realizations of what I'm thankful for. There are so many more, but here is what's on my heart.

1. I'm thankful for my parents. I'm thankful that they love me and they show it. My parents understood that when they got married, they were giving up some selfishness and when they had children, they were losing it all. Their lives became devoted to loving us, caring for us, and raising us in a way that was pleasing to God. I have such happy memories of childhood in a stable and loving family, and for that I am so grateful.

2. I'm thankful for my husband. He understands how to treat a woman and how a marriage is a partnership in which both parties contribute. There are times when he gets on my every last nerve, but he doesn't just tell me he loves me everyday, he shows me. I am married to my best friend and my partner in life and together we are creating the same type of household that I grew up in. My kids will also get to experience what stability and love means.

3. I'm thankful for my education. I had the opportunity to do anything I wanted to do. I had good teachers all the way through school who were positive and encouraging and who told me with sincerity that I could be anything I wanted to be. I got to go to college and eventually get my Master's Degree. Being an educator, I truly believe in the power of an education. Even if someone didn't come from the same background as me, education would be their way into a better life. Because of my degrees, I am in a place where I can provide the type of life I want my children to have.

4. Most of all, I'm thankful that God saved me from the life that could have been. Since I've gone to church my whole life, I can't even really imagine what life without God might look like. However, I see people every day who live that life. There is no hope in it. When crises happen, there's nowhere to turn. They turn to drugs or to hurting themselves because there is no relief from the pain. They can't ever stop thinking about how they've been hurt; there is no one there to help carry their burdens. I really don't know how they go on every day. Life is hard even for those of us who lean on God to carry us through, but at least we have the hope of Heaven and abundant joy in the process. Praise God that He is my hope and salvation- my ever present help in time of need.

Obviously, the reason that I was slapped in the face with these things is because I saw the opposite. I saw children whose parents still live in selfishness and are more concerned with themselves than their kids. I saw kids who know that their parents care more about something else than them and are looking so hard for someone to love them best that they don't hold any respect for themselves. I saw teenagers who had to experience two adults in physical combat because that is the way the "parents" believe that things should be solved in a marriage. I saw students that are so consumed with problems at home that they don't care about their education and are actually pushing away the one thing that can help them get out of that life. I saw adults and children who just have no hope for tomorrow. They are just trying to survive today and they see no light at the end of the tunnel. I saw people who have nowhere to turn.

This is what can be hard about my job, but its also what's great about it. There are times when God needs to stop me in my tracks as I am living this cushy blessed life and make me realize just what I have. Not only that, but I have a chance to help. God has put me in a position that I can be a positive influence in the lives of these kids. I can't change what has happened to them, nor can I really change their circumstances. However, I can be that person that cares. I can be that person who tells them that education can be their way out. I can work with them to help them understand what love should truly look like. Most of all, I can pray specifically for them. My childhood, my marriage, my education, and my faith have all prepared me for such a time as this. I pray every day that God will give me an opportunity to show His love and He responds every day by doing just that. I miss those opportunities a lot and I fail sometimes, but I'm given the opportunities. And for that in itself, I'm so thankful!

God Bless!

Manesseh