Thank You For All You Do
Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 7:12AM 
Last week, I was talking to the sister of a potential patient who was seeking treatment for addiction. The sister was extremely upset with her brother, and rightly so, because of a pattern of crazy addict behaviors. It was the usual for the go along with drug use… lying, manipulation, close-mindedness, disruption, breaking of trust, etc… The front-end of getting someone into recovery can be particularly difficult, given the life is usually on fire.
Despite the emotional fire, I needed the sister to do something, that i couldn't do. I needed her to give him a ride to our program, so that he could be admitted. Initially she refused and again rightly so. But in the break of words I said, "I need to tell you something." She asked, "What?" The words came natural. "I know you are fed up and I can understand why. Know one can blame you. Every feeling is authentic and justified, But I need to 'Thank you for all that you do.' You've been able to go beyond normal circumstances, put yourself aside and get things done. I feel that through the phone, so again I just simply say, 'Thank you for all that you do."
instantly she began crying. She said, "Thank you. No one has said that or taken the time to feel what I've been living through. It's been all about my brother. I'm tired. That you feel that with me, helps me." I won't tell you if she gave her brother a ride to treatment or not, but I will tell you that the words "Thank you for all you do" matter a lot for all of us.
You are reading these words and I am 100% sure that you have done something for someone that was a personal sacrifice, large or small. You may have done something to help someone in the background, without them knowing. You may have picked something up and carried it, without having to be asked, because it was simply the "Right" thing to do. You may have extended yourself, despite personal misgivings, giving someone or something a chance, hoping only to create a window of opportunity. Some might call that grace… compassion… hopefulness… I call it a policy of caring.
Just to punctuate the point, I'd like to share a couple more. I know a daughter who's father is ill and drove him to a VA hospital that was 2 hours away, in the middle of the night, because he was not feeling well. I know someone who fixed a friends care and didn't ask for any money to do it, because he already knew the person was in tough straights. I know someone who helps his neighbor by mowing their lawn, every other week, because that person has physical difficulties. These are just a few stories out of many that I'm aware of. Each story that you and I know or heard is important and speaks volumes about our essential nature.
That you put that capacity to use, reflects the nature of being a genuine human-being. It's genetic and in all of us. It is the foundation of living in a unified way. We can continuously nurture that presence of being and mindfulness in many ways. It only takes a moment. We just put the self aside and merge with the circumstances of the present, doing what needs to be done, because there was nothing else to do. For that expression of humaneness, "Thank you for all you do."
May We Practice Our Life Well,
Jaye Seiho Morris, Curator
digitalZENDO
Reader Comments (2)
It's true! I went to a seminar on compassion fatigue for professional caregivers. One of the most moving things happened at the end, when the facilitator went through the room, one by one, saying "Thank You" to each and every participant. I was seated about 2/3 of the way in the room, and could hear him saying thank you over and over, and if I turned around, I could see each person's face really light up, or relax in response, and I just didn't think I'd be so affected. But when he looked me right in the eyes, with such a clear intention to acknowledge the service I had contributed in this career and life, and then just said "thank you" for that, I was SO affected! It felt like water in the desert.
Thank YOU for an important reminder!
So true.
'Thank you' - two words that can go a very very long way inside someone's heart, and can give new life to one who has already given much.
I don't know about you, but appreciation gets me every time. My heart never tires of it. And I am also very generous in giving it as well. Our heart naturally recognizes when someone does something for us or other people. Why not say it out loud? So easy to do!
So, thank you Seiho, for all the caring that comes through in your tweets, and your posts. It has meant a lot to me, and I know I am not alone . . .
Deep bow to you,
marguerite