I am Thankful

[amigocabal]

I am thankful for...

the wife who says it’s hot dogs tonight because she is home with me and not out with someone else.
the husband who is on the sofa being a couch potato because he is home with me and not out at the bars.
the teenager who is complaining about doing dishes because it means she is at home, not on the streets.
the taxes I pay because it means I am employed.
the mess to clean after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends.
the clothes that fit a little too snugly because it means I have enough to eat.
my shadow that watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine, and for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning, and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a house.
all the complaining I hear about the government because it means we have freedom of speech.
the parking spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking and have been blessed with transportation.
my huge heating bill because it means I am warm.
the lady behind me in church who sings off key because it means I can hear.
the pile of laundry and ironing because it means I have clothes to wear.
weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means I have been capable of working hard.
the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means I am alive.

—submitted by Frances Shipp, Weaver High School, Weaver, Alabama

this is such a beautiful poem.


I would add this line.


- my leaky faucet because I have access to clean, running water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week- now excuse me while I fix this piece of shit, rusted over leaky faucet that it costing me money down the drain!

[salm]

The first three lines indicate that it´s written for jealous, untrusting control freaks who need to open up about the idea that people close to them actually have a social life.

[Hillary]

I would say it is typical of the sort of banal platitudes that you'd expect from a High School student who thinks he/she is being 'deep'.

"Oh look how sensitive and thoughtful I am".

Note that this is from a high schooler, so the likelihood that they actually encounter most of these things in real life is pretty small, e.g. they won't be married, pay heating bills, do the ironing, own a car, etc. In other words, this isn't even from the heart.

[Broomstick]

High school students owned cars in my day - not all of them, but some of them. Wow, things have changed.

Also used to do my own ironing, cooking, etc. in high school... but yeah, no heating bills and taxes.

[Raw Shark]

Oh c'mon, it's a kid. She's probably just projecting the worries her parents express to her, and glad that they're not cheating on each other (anymore).

[Phillip Hone]

I guess the gist of it is, "don't complain so much about middle class 'problems.'" I dislike the poem's style and it expresses some stifling jealousy in the first lines especially, but I like the general thrust of it.