A Gift of Thanks

One gift deserves another

Detail of St. Nicholas of Bari presents the Rovelli students to Madonna and Child by Moretto da Brescio, 1539 (public domain - Wikimedia Commons)

“The gift of a common tongue is a priceless inheritance and it may well some day become the foundation of a common citizenship.” — Winston Churchill, 1943

Yesterday, as we sat down to Thanksgiving dinner, we took a moment to go beyond our typical thanks for the bounty before us: everyone at the table said something about one or more people at the table that they were thankful for.

My own list of gratitude extended to every person at our table:

• My wife’s patience, hard work, and diligence with all things related to managing our family’s life;

• Our older son’s avid interest and skill in hockey and his burgeoning leadership on his team;

• Our younger son’s diligence in all that he undertakes, from schoolwork to athletics;

• Our daughter’s thoughtfulness and creativity;

• My mother’s kindness and generosity to all;

• And my father’s tough-as-nails battle w…