At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.
~Albert Schweitzer
One kind word can warm three winter months…
~Japanese Proverb
Charis always demands the answer of eucharistia.
Grace and gratitude belong together like heaven and earth.
Grace evokes gratitude like the voice an echo.
Gratitude follows grace like thunder and lightning.
…we are speaking of the grace of the God who is God for man, and of the gratitude of man as his response to this grace…
~Karl Barth (1886-1968) in Church Dogmatics: The Doctrine of Reconciliation
“Rekindling” happens without expectation. When I’m out of gas, spent and deflated, someone’s kind word, smile, gracious note or thank you makes all the difference. Suddenly I’m reignited and have fuel to spare. The spark plug comes alive once again and I’m up and running. I need to remember how this feels so I become the igniter and kindler for others.
I remember a moment in my work life in clinic as I was hurrying from one patient to another. A young woman stopped me as I was about to leave the exam room and said “Doctor, I am so grateful you were willing to see me so quickly today. I’ve been concerned about this for weeks, losing sleep with worry and now I feel so reassured it is nothing serious. Thank you!”Â
I once received a hand written letter (something rare as hen’s teeth) from a patient I cared for years before. He wanted to tell me he was doing well and how he had appreciated my kindness to him. I was astonished that he remembered me; in his letter he was uncertain if I would remember him. Patients don’t always know how they dwell in their doctors’ consciousness, how they teach us and how much we learn. I surely did remember this patient, his struggles with drug dependency, his strong urge to kill himself, and his desperate search for a reason to keep on living.
He was alive, doing well. He remembered my caring about him. And I was wrapped in his comforting words through some chilly days.
So – I want to share this gift of grace with you,
as a recurring echo which follows a cry of joy,
a warm illumination pouring out on darkness,
through words and images that kindle hope each day.
I thunder loudly at the lightning spark from God,
an unending echo of thanks with my every breath.
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