More Than Thankful

Thankful like a walk at dusk,

Or a pair of doggie paws that smell like Fritos.

Thankful like a mug of melted ice cream,

Or the spoon that gets to scoop it. 

Thankful like a perfectly straight golf shot,

Soaring high above and smooth.

Thankful like a run through the world,

Feet following feet.

Thankful doesn’t sound appreciative enough,

It sounds like an empty expression,

Rich with floating obligation and responsibility.

I think I need to think again.

Thankful is having one lamp,

One love,

One cold bite of salvaged food,

One pair of pants,

Never more than one, but still more than thankful.

Thankful like a frigid jail cell,

Hours and hours of intimate loneliness.

Thankful like the rejection,

Like the punishment,

Because of the love that boils within the walls.

Thankful is the nails.

Thankful is the belief.

Thankful is the heart.

Thankful is the death,

Because thankful IS His life.

Poem inspired by my pastor Dan Seale as he discussed the trials of a pastor and his family in Communist China.