Receiving Gratitude's Embrace

By Jason Warner

I grew up in the church and I was blessed to have parents who taught me the importance of being grateful for what we had. My dad was a physical education teacher at a middle school, and my mom was a stay-at-home mom who sold Avon on the side. We didn't have a lot of money but were comfortable. There were some days that I remember being sent to school with saltine crackers and mustard, and my mom told me to pretend there was cheese. Then Dad would get paid and Mom would load up on groceries which would almost take us through the next two weeks. Even though I now realize my parents struggled, I never felt deprived of anything. I was always grateful for our home, our family, and my life.