In 1970, I was playing MiLB in the old Northern League in Watertown, SD. That’s a long haul from my hometown of Lindseyville, KY. I became tired of always bumming rides with teammates and not having my own “wheels” with me, so I asked my mother to follow my dad when they visited and to drive my car from KY to SD. My mother had never driven more than 30 miles at any time in her life, but I asked her to drive over 900 miles just so it would be more convenient for me. I don’t think I even thanked her! About 30 years later on my way to visit my parents with my own family in tow, I thought about this sacrifice she made for me without expecting or receiving gratitude. When I walked in their door, I couldn’t wait to to thank my mom. She was stunned and I was blessed. It reminds me of what William Arthur Ward once said, “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”
We are happier when we are thankful. God created us that way.
