I Am Blessed

When she came from out back to behind the counter in the bakery part of the store, I was not surprised to see this older woman dressed in an ankle length simple pink dress underneath her apron.  After all, it was a Mennonite bakery and restaurant.   As morning greetings were exchanged I said to her, "Hope your day is going well," and she responded by saying, "I am blessed."  The words she spoke resonated from the joyful countenance which showed beneath the small white cloth covering upon her graying head. 

All day I have carried her words, "I am blessed," with me.  In a way she could not have imagined when she spoke, she has blessed me all day long.  Whenever my mind found a neutral moment, those words took hold and brought blessing in my life.  Simple words.  They were surely words spoken from a grateful heart.  Blessings may come from God, but recognizing the gifts of God as blessings only comes to us as we receive them with gratitude. 

Try it some day when it seems that the gray clouds have pulled all the sunlight out of the world where we live.  As we begin to see and acknowledge the things around us which bless us, a sour attitude is likely to be overcome by thanksgiving.  And what blesses us?  Everything around us has the inherent power to bless our life.  We simply do not always have eyes to see.  A bird blesses us with the beauty of flight.  A tree blesses us with shade on a hot day.  A glass of cold water blesses us as it quenches thirst.   A stranger blesses us with a gesture of kindness.  Ah, blessings, simple blessings do abound and we, like the Mennonite lady, are surely one of those so grateful that we, too, could be heard saying, "I am blessed."