Occupy Wall Street vs Thanksgiving & the Widow's Mite.

On this Thanksgiving 2011, while the Occupy Wall Streeters have made their complaints heard about the inequities of life, I would like to bring up the famous biblical story of the Widow's Mite. We should all be familiar with the story of the poor woman, who came to the temple one day and deposited a few measly coins in the collection box.  Jesus contrasted her small donation with that of others who were much more monetarily endowed; pointing out that she had "given from her want". He teaches his apostles, that her miniscule donation had required a far greater sacrifice, than those who had far more to give. In fact, Jesus hints that those who had more, had probably given way less than they could have afforded, in comparison to the poor widow, who had given all she had.

The Occupy Wall Streeters have been singing the age old tune of the haves and the have-nots, which is at the top of the hit parade these days; especially since Obama took office. I also find this in stark contrast to the Widow's Mite, as well as the 1st Pilgrims, who celebrated the 1st Thanksgiving way back in 1620. This attitude of entitlement has taken over the attitude of thankfulness, as well as asking what we can give, as opposed to what we can get.

We can all find something to be thankful for, even in the midst of an inequitable and corrupt world. We can all look more to what we are able to contribute, even from our want, instead of being cry babies over what the other guy has that we don't have. Yes, much of what the other guy has may very well be "ill gotten gains"  (another term from my parent's generation); but they can keep their ill gotten gains as far as I'm concerned. I don't want their booty.

As a child growing up in the 1950's, a time of relative plenty for most Americans, my family had far less than my contemporaries; and my siblings and I were considered the "poor kids" in the neighborhood."  Did this bother me?  I won't lie; sometimes it did. There were times when I was ashamed of my shabby, 2nd hand clothing, in a school where all the other little girls and boys were adequately attired in the newest styles of the times. We did not have things like potato chips and Twinkies in our household cupboard, as the other neighborhood kids did. And yes, I got made fun of because of my out of date and worn out clothing, which did not fit my skinny frame. But, did I really consider myself to be poor?  Did I think that the world was unfair, and that somebody out there owed me something?  More importantly, did I see myself, as someone who had "nothing to give"?

Au Contrare! Whenever things came in the mail, from missions, showing pictures of poor little starving children, with swollen bellies and flies swarming around their heads, I would inevitably ask my mother, "can we give them some money?"  Even though I at times had holes in my own shoes, I still wanted to give some money to those poor kids in the missions.  And so we did.  We gave from our want, as the widow in the Bible; and I was so happy to be able to help others. I did not focus on those who had more than myself; rather I looked to those who had less, and sought to find something out of my own want to give them. On top of that, I was "thankful" for every little thing that the Good Lord had given me. I counted my blessings, as my grandparent's generation had always taught me; and I learned the virtue of "not feeling sorry for myself".

This is a world of inequities and unfair situations; and I am not saying that we should not endeavor to rectify these inequities, whenever and however we can. But, always remembering, that it is not about what we can get, as it is about what we can give - and always giving thanks for what we do have, instead of looking at what we don't have. Instead of seeing ourselves as have-nots, see ourselves as people who have much to give, and much to be thankful for. Realizing, that though we may have less than some, we will always have more than others. Let's see how can we help those others, instead of how we can help ourselves .. to the rich man's booty.

To this very day, looking at our financial situation, especially since my husband has been out of work for quite some time, we still get piles of mail from various missions and causes and suffering people, to which my husband and I still strive to imitate the widow in the Bible. We still prefer to see ourselves, as people who have much to give, no matter what our circumstances. 

So, if you think the world is filled with inequities - instead of looking to see how much more you can get for yourself - try and see how much more you can give.  For if we ALL gave a little more, there would be a little less inequity in the world.  And most of all ... let us give thanks, for the many blessings we do have, which the Good God bestows on the rich and poor alike.  The best things in life are still free.