The Patriot Report – Jan 15

“I am grateful for…”

Recently, my four year old daughter has been saying what she is grateful for at the dinner table. She will often start with “I am grateful for my brother, Evan, because he plays LEGO with me” and then she will go around the table saying something particular about each one of us. The first time this happened, my wife and I exchanged surprised glances. Even her brothers stopped, curious as to what she might say about them. When she was finished, she then instructed Evan it was his turn. Evan said he was thankful for his dinner. Nadia, was not going to have it. She corrected him and said, “No. It has to be about me. What are you thankful for about me?”

On the inside, I was howling. Her true motivations had come to the forefront. She was looking for compliments from each of us. We of course instructed her that we can be grateful for many things. I do not think her words of gratitude were hollow though. She meant what she had said. I think she was just expecting that her brother would talk about her. But brothers can be aloof to such things. We told her that it was wonderful that she is grateful for brothers and that she spoke so kindly. However, we cannot demand that others say similar things about ourselves. She was not impressed. 

I share this story in the hopes that it brought you some laughs. Children are fascinating and they certainly keep parents on their toes. 

The 2021 donation envelopes are ready to be picked up from the church. Please call the parish at (604) 434-6700 to arrange a time for pick up. While in-person liturgies are suspended, the parish values your contributions to maintaining the church. Thank you. 

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