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Think you've got nothing to be thankful for? Just sit down here and think again.
"I have so much to be thankful for. I wouldn't know where to begin," she said.
I wouldn't know either. As I looked around her home, I couldn't find a thing that she could include.
I have discovered that the friendliest, most welcoming people in the world are those who have little in the way of material things to offer. What they lack in possessions they make up for in spirit and love.
Some years ago I had been working for the Commission on Economic Opportunity. It was the year following a devastating flood in Pennsylvania. My job was to interview low-income families and assess their needs. Up until that moment I thought I had seen it all. The odd thing was I was looking at nothing at all, and this woman was thankful.
The home, though technically out of the flood area, looked like it had been a part of the destruction. The front porch steps were missing, replaced by a few cinder blocks and planks. There were several broken windows, and part of the foundation had caved in, exposing the basement to the weather.
That particular day it was in the upper 30s with a strong wind blowing. Snow was predicted by nightfall.
Thanksgiving Day was approaching, and quite frankly my heart was not into doing these surveys. Like many others, I just wanted to start my holiday early. This was the last stop for me. Tomorrow like millions of other families we would be gathered around the table filling ourselves to capacity.
Oddly I hadn't even thought about what this family was looking forward to. I just figured they would be taken care of by some organization or church. I looked around the kitchen for some sign of a charitable box of goodies but saw nothing there.
The house was bitter cold. The young children ran several times through the kitchen playing, laughing like any other kids. I happened to notice that they were barefoot on this cold linoleum floor.
At one point I said to one of the youngest girls, "You should go put your socks and shoes on before you get sick."
She replied, "Mommy, did this man bring me some shoes I can wear?"
"No, Sissy. He didn't. Go put on a pair of mine. He's right--you need something on your feet."
I was embarrassed for having put her in that position.
"Well, I'm finished here. Thank you for your time. I hope you have a wonderful...." I didn't know what to say. How could they possibly have a wonderful anything?
"Look, I'm sorry. I know there must not be much to be thankful for these days," I said nervously.
"Well, you certainly are wrong about that!" she said emphatically. Then, rising to her feet, she walked into the living room and stood in the middle.
"My dear, I am truly blessed for all of this. I know it doesn't look like much. But who made the rules that say that we can only be thankful for things that cost money?
"Sit here on this chair," she told me. "That chair may be worthless even to a junk dealer. But I sat in that chair and waited for months when my son was in the service. That was my worry chair. I sat in that chair, prayed and gave thanks when the good Lord brought him safely home to me. It was in that same chair I was sitting when my daughter came home from school and told me she was going to college ‘cause she got a full scholarship. It was my joyful chair.
It was also in that chair that I sat holding my daddy's hand when he died. They had sent him home telling us there was nothing more they could do. He wanted to be at home. We put the chair next to his bed, and I ate, slept, and cried as I sat in that chair holding his hand. He was all the world to me when I was growing up. I owed him that much.
"So how much is that chair worth in dollars? Nothing. But I wouldn't trade it for anything," she said.
Then walking over to a picture on the wall she said, "You see this man? He's the man that has loved me for all these years. He's at work now. He doesn't make much, but he works hard for it. He paid for that chair in sweat. How much money value do I put on him? There isn't enough money in all the world for the true value of love."
"Those kids running around the house. Yeah, maybe someone would say I'm not a good parent. But you go and ask them if they love their mommy and daddy. Then tell me how much that is worth," she said.
Then she added, "I'm thankful for my sight, I am thankful that I have good health, considering everything else. I am thankful for my faith. Oh, how thankful I am that I have something to believe in. I am thankful for the second-hand quilt the lady down the street gave me yesterday."
She gestured toward the other room. "Do you hear that laughter? I'm thankful my kids are playing and laughing like other kids in the neighborhood. How much would you pay to find something to laugh about when things aren't so good? There is so much I am thankful for that most people take for granted," she said. I stood up and picked up my briefcase. It was time to go.
She walked over to the chair I'd just vacated and sat down, adding, "So now I call this my 'Thankful Chair.' Tomorrow when we gather round the table to share whatever meal God will provide--and he always provides--I will be thankful that He sent you here to talk to me," she said, smiling.
I knew then that, in addition to making my report to the state, I would be coming back with a pair of shoes and socks, as well as some other ingredients for a happy Thanksgiving. "Thanks for sharing your 'Thankful Chair' with me," I said, walking out the door. "I believe one day I will find that priceless."
I was right.
你觉得没有什么需要感激？那就坐下来再想一想。
“我有那么多的东西要感激。我都不知道从哪里说起。”她说道。
我也不知道。我四下打量她的屋子，没有找到一件她可以纳入感激范畴的东西。
我发现世界上最友善、最热诚的是那些拿不出多少物质资料的人。他们财产方面的匮乏在精神和爱方面得到了弥补。
几年前，我在经济机会委员会工作。那年宾夕法尼亚州刚刚遭受了灾难性的大洪水。我的工作是去拜访那些低收入家庭并且确定他们的所需。在那一刻之前我本以为自己已经看清了一切。令人奇怪的是，在什么都入不了我眼的处境里，这位妇女却要表示感谢。
这座屋子虽然从理论上来说并不在洪泛区，但看上去也同样遭到了毁坏。前面门廊处的台阶不见了，眼下用一些煤渣块和木板将就着。有几扇窗户破了，部分地基下陷，将地下室都露了出来。
那天气温35华氏度朝上些，刮着大风。据预报，黄昏前要下雪。
感恩节要到了，老实说我并没有心思做这些调查。就象许多其他人一样，我只想假期早点到来。这儿是我的最后一站。明天，就象成千上百万其他家庭一样，我们将围坐在餐桌旁放开肚子大吃特吃。
奇怪的是，我甚至都没想一下这家人心中在期盼什么。我只是估摸着他们将会得到某个组织或教会的照顾。我环顾厨房想找找看是否有慈善物品盒子的踪影，但什么也没有看见。
屋子极其寒冷。小孩子们有好几回跑过厨房，象别的孩子那样嬉戏、大笑。我碰巧注意到，在这么冷的油布地面上他们竟然光着脚。
有一刻，我对其中一个最小的女孩说：“你应该穿上袜子和鞋子，不要生病了。”
她回答道：“妈妈，他给我带来了我能穿的鞋子吗？”
“没有，茜茜。他没有。去把我那双穿上。他说得对—你们需要脚上穿些东西。”
让她处于那样的境地中，我感到很是尴尬。
“好了，我完成了。谢谢你抽出时间。我祝你们过个好的……”我不知道说什么。他们怎会过个好的什么呢？
“瞧，我很抱歉。我知道近来肯定没有什么值得感激的。”我不安地说。
“哎呀，这一点你肯定错了！”她强调道。接着，她站起身，走进起居室，站在了房间中央。
“亲爱的，我真的很有福。我知道这一切看上去并不怎么样。但谁规定我们只能感激那些值钱的东西？
“坐到这把椅子里去，”她跟我说。“这把椅子虽然连收破烂的也可能认为不值钱。但是在我儿子服兵役时，我坐在这把椅子里等待了好多个月。这是我的担心椅。当主将他平安带回家来时，我坐在椅子里作祷告表示感激。也就是坐在这把椅子里的时候，女儿放学回家来告诉我她要上大学了，因为她得了全额奖学金。这是我的快乐椅。
也是坐在这把椅子里，爸爸死的时候我握着他的手。他们将他送回家来告诉我们他们已无能为力。他想要呆在家里。我们把椅子放在他的床边，我坐在椅子里，吃饭、睡觉、哭泣时都握着他的手。在我成年之前他是我的整个世界。我欠他的太多了。
“你说，这把椅子值多少钱？一文不值。但什么东西拿来我都不换。“她说。
接着，她走到墙上挂的一幅照片前说：“瞧见这个人了吗？他是那个这些年来一直爱我的人。他现在在上班。他挣得不多，但他工作努力。他用汗水买回了这把椅子。我能说他值多少钱吗？ 世上没有那么多的钱能体现出爱的真正价值。”
“这些在家里跑来跑去的孩子。的确，可能会有人说我不是个好母亲。但是你可以去问问看他们是否爱他们的爸爸和妈妈。然后告诉我那值多少钱。”她说。
随后，她补充道：“除此之外，我感激自己拥有良好的视力，我感激自己拥有健康的身体。我感激自己拥有信仰。噢，我多么感激自己有信仰的东西。我感激昨天街上那位女士给我的旧棉被。”
她指了指另一个房间。“你听到笑声了吗？我感激我的孩子能象周围其他孩子一样嬉戏大笑。当不顺心的时候，你会付多少钱去寻找令你开怀大笑的东西？我对那些多数人认为理所当然的东西深表感激。”她说道。我站起身，拿起公文包。该走了。
她走到我刚空出来的椅子边坐下，又说：“所以，我把这把椅子称作‘感激椅’。明天当我们围坐在餐桌边上帝赐给的食物时—他总是赐给我们东西—我会感激他将你派到这里来和我谈话。”她微笑着说。
此时此刻，我知道，除了向州里作汇报以外，我还会拿上一双鞋子和袜子以及过好感恩节所需的其它一些东西再次回到这里。“谢谢你和我分享你的‘感激椅’。”我说着走出门去。“我相信有朝一日我会找到那样的无价之宝。”
我当时真是说对了。
