An embarrassment to her family…
They kept her at arms length.
Her days of hugs and kisses
Had long ago been spent.
They complained about the odor…
Raised their noses to the sky…
But times when she refused to bathe
They didn’t bother to ask why.
She remembered when she’d been the one
To scrub behind their ears…
How she’d run their daily baths
And tended to them all those years.
Why couldn’t they attend to her?
Just return the care she’d given?
They wouldn’t lift a finger to
Make her life seem worth living.
They kept her in a corner…
So far from the family table.
Served her in a wooden bowl
Because she’d been unable.
To eat or drink without a spill…
O, she’d broken many dishes.
Her hands shook uncontrollably…
She couldn’t cater to their wishes.
They wanted more than her warped hands
Or aged body could comply.
Their demands were so demeaning
That they sometimes made her cry.
Then one Thanksgiving just before
The table had been spread
With the turkey and its trimmings….
One of the children said,
“I suppose when I get bigger
And you guys have grown real old
I will have to serve your turkey
In a like-so wooden bowl…
I’ll have to sit you in a corner
Like grandma’s made to do.
I want to follow your example
You see, I want to be like you.”
A stinging silence crushed the air…
Faces froze for just a mite...
Then reality reached out to see
That wrong must be made right.
An extra setting…extra plate
Was placed with loving care...
And the once ignored old woman
Asked to say Thanksgiving prayer.
Doris Jacobs-Covington
November 25, 2013
Revisited Thanksgiving 2014
~~Dedicated to Monique
And all my friends at PoetryPoem
and all my face book friends as well~~
~~Authors Note~~
Again, this was inspired by an email…several
people sent it…Annette being the last…but thanks
to all who shared it. God let me work it into a
heart touching piece of poetry. Inspiration comes
in all directions.
1 Timothy 4:4-5
For everything God created is good, and nothing
is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,
because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.
Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
to God the Father through him.
2 Timothy 5:8
But if anyone does not provide for his relatives,
and especially for members of his household,
he has denied the faith and is worse than
an unbeliever.
1 Timothy 5:4
But if a widow has children or grandchildren,
let them first learn to show godliness to their own
household and to make some return to their
parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God.
Thanksgiving Day Prayer
Heavenly Father, on Thanksgiving Day
We bow our hearts to You and pray.
We give You thanks for all You’ve done
Especially for the gift of Jesus, Your Son.
For beauty in nature, Your glory we see
For joy and health, friends and family
For daily provision, Your mercy and care
These are the blessings You graciously share.
So today we offer this response of praise
With a promise to follow You all of our days.