This year, as Thanksgiving approaches, I’ve been thinking a lot about Haiti. I’ve always loved Thanksgiving: time with family and friends, a reminder of gratitude, and a break to celebrate. And pie! Let’s not forget the pie. But there is not a lot of pie happening in Haiti.
I’m seeing in my mind’s eye the Thanksgiving dinner that I enjoy so much. And at the same time, I’m seeing a much-too-thin child. And I wonder, in our abundance, if we will remember those who have less in such a way that we are moved to action. I firmly believe that if we are going to have good things like our Thanksgiving dinners, we need to enjoy them. Not to do so would be a waste of these good things. And if we believe in the Incarnation, we also know that God created us as embodied beings. We were given a sense of taste for a reason: if God gives us something good to taste, we need to savor it! It might actually make us less greedy if we took time truly to taste what is in front of us.
And if we believe in the Incarnation, we also know that it is not only our own bodies and senses for which we are called to show care, but also those of others. It does matter that there are people in Haiti who do not have enough to eat. And yes, it is my responsibility – our responsibility – as children of God to care for other children of God.
I’m not going to spend time feeling guilty, and I am going to enjoy my Thanksgiving dinner. Since I can’t mail a plate of turkey and stuffing – or pie! – to Haiti, I need to consider what might be the next best thing. My old kitchen magnet from my pre-convent life springs to mind: “Live simply so that others may simply live.” It’s time for me to consider how I might better enact this at this point in my life.
I invite you to do the same.
