Often a “thank you” isn’t needed. Why thank a person for doing what he is supposed to do? Here’s a thought: a “thank you” may encourage someone to do the right thing the next time he’s in that situation, or it might be the only bright spot in his otherwise-depressing day. I thank the driver who stops for me in the crosswalk, the bicyclist who sees me coming in my handicap scooter and moves from the sidewalk to the street, the woman who notices me pulling into a disabled parking spot and moves the shopping cart she’d blocked me with in the cross-hatch section, the teen who turns down his loud music when he notices that we at the next picnic table are being bothered by it, the delivery man for being gentle with my package, the child who puts his trash into the can without being told. Why? Because we are responsible for each other, including nourishing each other’s spirits, fostering actions that inspire others to care about members of the human family. Such is the power of a simple “thank you.”
Something to think about — and practice — on this International Thank-You Day.