In grade 3 I was in my value education class early in the morning and I was sad because I had missed my favorite tv.show the night before because my mother did not let me stay up till 10 pm.
I did not want to listen to anything the teacher was saying because I had missed a very important part in my life and then all my friends were going to talk about it…I was not going to be able to participate in the conversation…and then the same being left behind was going to happen…which I did not like.
Life is not fair you know…when you miss your favorite TV.show and your freinds leave you behind.
My teacher was explaining how we should be grateful in life.How we should sincerely say thank-you to people who have directly/indirectly helped us.God,Plants,Birds,Trees,Builders,Guards,Cleaners,Sweepers…but then again she is a nun…she is always about things like this.Normal people do not have time to appreciate people they do not know and they have every right to not think of other people and non humans because they are busy and they have more to do in life than just appreciate.
She said,”Have you ever thought about how many people worked just so that you can have a slice of bread with some jam on your table?”
”Of course my dad went to work made some money and bought bread and my mother made it for me.”a girl who thought she was the smartest thing that happened to the universe answered.
My teacher smiled,”Of course my child…but how many people actually work for it? Do you think your father used fertilized the soil and farmed to grow the wheat?”
”But that is their job….the farmer’s job I mean..and we pay money to them so we are already paying for their work.” she answered back feeling smarter than ever.
I was almost forgetting my pain and almost getting where my teacher was getting to…maybe she had a point.
”We humans are very good at taking things for granted…and we think that we are the most social animals of all class…we humans think that we are the ones who understands the world and hence the only ones who can save it…when that is not exactly what reality is.” My teacher said with a distant look in her eyes.
”I am sorry Sr.Rashmi but I am not getting what you are saying how is saying thank-you and being human related?” I asked with question marks in my eyes.
”Always with questions this one..” she cleared her throat and continued,”The simple act of buying bread is filled with a lot of people and a lot of process…it is the farmer who grows the wheat,the farmer’s raw material provider who gets him fertilizers and all the required materials,it’s someone else who helps the farmer collect everything and process,he then sells it to someone else and then a lot of people are involved in this whole process..then there are bread manufacturing companies who buy it and factory process it…there are people who used their creativity to create an attractive package for your bread’s wrapper so that it is eye-pleasing..and then there were people who helped to transport the finished goods to whole-sellers and then to retailers and then in convenient stores and then we have access to it…..Has anyone thought of how many people our lives are dependent on? ”
Noone in class knew what to say…grade 3 students do not think of life this way.
”And then we think that the 20 bucks we put in from our effort is the perfect payment we ought to make but nothing more…….but once we say thank-you to whoever it is that made all this possible we thank all the people in the process sending good wishes out to the universe making .Do you know how much more you do by being grateful? by being human?By appreciating things around us…we say we are amazed to be alive and enjoy the process.”
I was 8 years old that time but I have kept that lesson with myself….that saying thank-you is one of the best things that you can do in life…to people who have done good or bad in our life…for people who have done good you should thank them for the experience and for people who have not for the lessons…there are always always always alwaaaaaays things we should be thankful about and saying thank you from the inner core of your heart just makes you feel better about life…about your self…
So,always say thankyou…to whoever is looking after you…. always 🙂
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