Be Thankful

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.
Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for your mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you're tired and weary,
because it means you've made a difference.
It's easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those
Who are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,
and they can become your blessings.

I have had the most wonderful Thanksgiving this year. I am so thankful for all the support of my family, my friends and my community. I can finally say that my son Crew is verbal. I never thought I would ever be able to say that, and here I am ten years later hearing a perfect sentence, “Mommy I want to go to Blockbuster. Four movies please.”

How can you say no? This was not miracle; this was not medicine. This was years of everyone being so supportive and never making us feel different. In our town nobody sees Crew as any different from anyone else. Like an alcoholic decides to stop drinking, we stopped hiding and made Crew fit in every way we could. It has finally paid off. Crew will always have autism, and we will never be able to cure him of that. But I am starting to learn that autism doesn't have to be such a bad thing. The last line of the poem says it best, “Find a way to be thankful for your troubles, and they become your blessings.” Crew is a blessing in our lives everyday. To have to work as hard as he does everyday, we should all look up to him and learn a thing or two!