During Thanksgiving our family gathered and we chose it as an opportune moment to present Grand #4 with his North American Travel Scholarship trip folder. The trip folder was final confirmation to Grand #4 that his North American Travel Scholarship Application to python hunt, shark catch, and deep sea fish had been accepted.
The trip packet presentation is historically a time when we talk through the trip itinerary with family members and other Grands listening in and commenting about the activities the scholarship winning Grand will experience.
As a part of our presentation, we had a link to an episode of the History Channel’s Swamp Hunter show with Bill Booth hunting for python. After watching intently Grand #4 sprang from his chair, giving us both a HUGE hug saying, “Thank you for making my dream come true!” It was music to our ears.
After a particularly long and messy day of hunting for pythons in which we trekked over five, densely forested islands, Grand #4’s lightly colored jeans were stained with leaves and branches from the scrub brush we had valiantly fought through in the search for a snake. As we walked into our rented condominium he politely asked if I would wash his jeans and when I said, “Of course!” he, once again, genuinely said, “Thank you!”
I was so struck by his heartfelt gratitude that it filled me with joy to do the task of nighttime clothes washing after a long and tiring day. I’m not sure I had ever stopped, until that moment, and realized how much a genuine “thank you” means to people. But as this realization dawned on me, Grand #4’s gratitude became a motivating factor to do something that I would not typically want to do at the end of a long day. However, his gratitude caused me to do the task with joy knowing that he would be grateful that I had helped him.
Grand #4 taught me a big lesson today, genuine gratitude is powerful and I need to cultivate a heart of gratitude, telling others how much I appreciate them and the ways in which they enrich my life.
Mary Beth I have a passion for creating and experiencing unforgettable moments and sharing those with others. I hope that this story has helped you experience one of those moments.
