The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Life!

August 14, 2010

Prayers of gratitude for those who touch our lives

The Register-Herald

— This will be a tough Thanksgiving holiday for a lot of us here at the newspaper.

One co-worker lost her mother a few months back. Another lost her 41-year-old sister to cancer.

This could be the last Thanksgiving together with her spouse for another friend.

This week, unexpectedly, we lost Alice Underwood, a production assistant whose passing touched every department.

A newspaper is made up of so many parts, and it takes so many different kinds of roles to get the job done every day.

When we lose a member, the whole team feels the impact.

I remember Alice most for her beautiful hands which were often busily manipulating knitting or crochet needles during her lunch break. She could keep up her end of the conversation without ever losing a stitch in some complicated pattern that would have stopped me on the first line of the instructions.

She turned out beautiful pieces of work, and I’m lucky to own a few things she made.

A week before a surgery she expected to come through without a hitch, Alice told me she was 63. The youthful face and exuberant spirit didn’t match the age. She was spunky and could find a way to make any situation laughable.

Alice was also a woman with a strong Christian faith. I remember some good talks we had together. They remind me how important it is for believers to share their faith and encourage one another.

It will be a long time before I stop expecting her to pop by my desk early in the mornings, and all of us here will feel her loss for a long time to come.

We’re not alone in facing a Thanksgiving that will be difficult for those who’ve lost loved ones this year. Our obituary pages have been filled nearly every day the past several months. Many families will face this first Thanksgiving without someone special.

Our challenge is to find a way to shift our focus to the appreciation of those we still have with us. Thanksgiving is not only about expressing our gratitude for the myriad things that make our lives comfortable and enjoyable. It’s also about expressing appreciation to co-workers, friends, family members and public servants for all they do to make our lives meaningful.

I think perhaps we all need to spend more time in prayer this Thanksgiving. Prayers of gratitude should head the list, but we also need to pray for one another. May we take time to remember others coping with sorrow and loss and petition the Lord for grace and strength for those dealing with serious illnesses, family crises and financial stress.

Thankfully, we live in a country where we can pray and where we can openly share our faith with others. May we never be so consumed with our own losses that we miss an opportunity to extend comfort, compassion and support to others who are hurting.

May we make this Thanksgiving a time of giving as well as a time of thanks.

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