英语美文：Counting Our Blessings
知足感恩 勇度难关
【博主按语】经济危机来临，家里的顶梁柱也没有了收入，只能靠积蓄度日，在此艰难时刻信心比黄金贵，作者一家靠着感恩知足之心，不向困难低头，度过了难关，收获也多多...
by Jane Mcbride
Choate
"We're not getting a paycheck this
week.”
I wasn't
particularly alarmed by my husband’s words. After all, he had gone
without a salary in the past, and we had always made do. Mentally,
I congratulated ourselves that we had no debt outside the mortgage
on our home.
With two partners,
my husband owned a small engineering firm. When times were tight,
he and his partners went without paychecks, making certain their
employees were paid. I was grateful to be married to such an
honorable man.
Two weeks passed
then four, then six, all with no salary in sight. The bills arrived
with depressing regularity, though, and we lived off our savings, a
spotty food storage, and faith in the Lord.
The fall of 2008
marked an economic downturn for the entire country. Caught in he
spiral, clients who had always paid on time in the past now failed
to pay their bills.
Christmas
approached and I wondered how we would find the
means to buy even small presents. I didn't mention this to my
husband, knowing he had worry enough on his mind. I searched
bargain bins and put my creativity to my work.
In the meantime, I
joined freecycle.com, an international organization devoted to
preventing more items from ending up in already over-burdened
landfills. As a freecycle member, I could post
items online that I no longer needed or wanted and other members
could respond. In the same way, I could answer others’ posts if I
saw something I needed.
Four weeks into our
doing without a salary, I noticed two messages listing pantry
items. I e-mailed back immediately, saying that my family could
really use the food.
In freecycle, the first person to answer a listing is
usually the one who receives it. When I noticed the time the
listings were posted, my heart sank.
Several hours had
passed.
Surely the items had already been taken.
To my surprise and
delight, both freecyclers e-mailed me, saying that the food was
mine. They gave me their addresses, and we arranged a pick-up
time.
I went through the
boxes of food like a child opening presents on Christmas morning.
Cans of vegetables. Potato flakes. A cake mix. Even fresh fruit. My
husband, teenage daughter (the only child remaining at home), and I
feasted that night!
A quick friendship
developed between an older lady and myself. She gave me other
foodstuffs when she had more than she needed. I drove her to
various stores and did errands for her, as she was unable to drive.
We sent each other inspirational messages and discovered we had
much in common, including a deep faith in our Creator.
My membership in
freecycle encouraged me to clean out clothes, books, and household
goods that we no longer used. As I uncluttered my house, I felt as
though I was uncluttering my soul, ridding it of old grudges,
resentments and fears.
I wrote our four
adult children, explaining our situation.
I also mentioned
that we would be cutting back on Chritmas presents that year and
suggested they do the same. As a gentle hint, I told them that the
best present they could give their father and me was to get out of
debt.
In previous years,
I had kept a gratitude journal. Every day I had recorded things,
both large and small, for which I was grateful. As frequently
happens with good habits, this one slipped away in the busy-ness of
life. I revived it, listing the things every night as I wrote in my
journal.
Small occurrences
found their way into my gratitude journal. A shiny penny found
during a walk. A letter from a friend. An unexpected phone call
from a long distance relative. A hug from my usually standoffish
teenage daughter. The feeling of sunshine on my face.
Everyday things
became a cause for rejoicing. When was the last time I had been
thankful for a washing machine and dryer?
When had I last
given thanks for friends who listened to my complaints without
sharing their own? (shamed, I resolved to mend that nasty habit. )
When had I last thanked God for a strong body, even though it
wasn’t in the shape or condition I desired?
My priorities began
to shift. I stopped thinking of what I didn’t have and began to
think more of what I did. At the same time, I looked around and
realized that others were suffering as well. I took time to send
notes to friends and church members who needed an extra dose of
love. I prayed more and complained less. I counted my
blessings.
Our financial
situation hadn’t changed, but my attitude had.
Nearly eight weeks
had passed since my husband had received a paycheck and Christmas
was upon us. I had managed to buy and make modest presents for
family and friends. I refused to give in to the temptation to
apologize for the humbleness of the gifts, knowing those who loved
me would understand and accept my
offerings.
One evening my husband returned home, a wide grin
stretching across his face. "Money came in the mail. "He went on to
explain that one of his customers, also a victim of the slow
economy, had sent a long overdue check.
We had gone nearly
two months without a paycheck. Not only had we survived, we had
thrived.
I took stock of our
lives: we had friends, family, and faith. We were rich
indeed.
原文地址：http://www.chickensoup.com/book-story/31009/41-counting-our-blessings
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