NATASHA'S CHRONICLES : COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

We’ve watched the year 2009 come and go. I am just not sure if we’ve taken time to measure the weight of our blessings each year. For example, many youth, on each of the 365 days in a year have lived and had a minimum of three meals a day! This makes it 1,095 meals each year! At your age, you can do the math. No one ever said that we must eat all these meals no matter what; we do because it’s a right. Yet there isn’t a single meal at home we have paid for. Are we even thankful to those who provide for us? There are people that showed us love and support. Those who have faced our weakness with us and tolerated the nuisance, but also focusing on our strengths! Those that wanted to know how we were at certain times and were happy. Those that stayed besides us even when they didn’t know what to say or do to help. They are an invaluable portion of our lives I believe! We cannot forget those without whom our clothes, dishes, streets, gardens, houses, churches…etc would be a dirty lot. They make our life both easy and comfortable, and for those who’ve cared to interact with them, they’ve opened our eyes to a wider world. Yet a few have cared to add a simple word or act of appreciation towards them. There is also a commonly forgotten group of people whom we owe a lot of gratitude. I don’t know if we wonder why we’re able to travel place to place without doubting our safety or freedom. They make a living by spending sleepless nights to ensure that we are protected. There are also those whom we have wronged and owe an apology. Asking for forgiveness is quite tough, yet it will bring you peace. Many of us crave for peace in 2010. I also agree with Georg C. Lichtenberg’s words; “To many people virtue consists chiefly in repenting faults, not in avoiding them.” I believe one quality in a man of value, is his willingness to take responsibility for his actions. And for those who’ve wronged us, forgiveness is a door to peace too. We should be able to forgive as we want to be forgiven. Always remember to, ‘give a thousand chances for your enemy to be your friend but not one for your friend to be your enemy.’ On behalf of all the youth, a huge thank you goes to the people who made 2009 worth living through, and to our president, who has wholeheartedly placed this country as a personal priority. We owe you all a lot! The author is a Senior 5 student at Riviera High School hozatash@yahoo.com