Be Thankful And Say So

by Kay Heitsch

This week of Thanksgiving, I'd like to share two stories.

How thankful are you for the ability to talk and to eat? I never thought about this until my Aunt Ruth had a stroke and could not speak or eat. Before her stroke, she would call me, or I'd call her, and she would always ask me what I was planning to make for dinner that night. I could see how important our daily talks and eating were to her. When Aunt Ruth had her stroke, she could not talk or eat; she was given a feeding tube to keep her alive.

For many years I worked in a memory care center. Ken was a resident at the memory care center. When he first arrived, Ken also had a feeding tube like Aunt Ruth. Ken was able to have his feeding tube removed and was able to start eating pureed food.

The first day when the pureed food was put in front of Ken, he immediately began to eat nonstop. After he was finished eating, I noticed tears in his eyes. Ken then bowed his head and started to pray out loud. I'll never forget Ken's prayer. "Our Father who art in heaven, thank you for this delicious food I have already eaten."

I was moved by Ken's devotion, knowing that I would no doubt complain if I had to eat this pureed food, but Ken was thankfully praising God.

This Thanksgiving, I remember Aunt Ruth and Ken. I pray I'll never take for granted the many blessings I have, especially the ability to talk and enjoy a delicious meal. HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EACH OF YOU!

"I will proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving. And tell of all Your wondrous works. Psalm 26:7

"Happy Birthday, From Todd"

by Kay Heitsch

It was November 17th, Todd's birthday. It didn't matter how many years had gone by since Todd's death; his birthday was still a memorable but sad day for me.

I slowly walked down to the mailbox at the end of the driveway. I was feeling pretty low even though I was trying to keep a positive outlook. I took out the mail from the box and walked up the hill towards the house.

As I sorted through the mail, I saw a letter from The Peale Center. "What on earth could this be?" I wondered. I opened the letter and read, "Dr. Peale would like permission to print your letter "In Loving Memory of Todd" as the Introduction in a hardback edition of "Have A Great Day-Every Day!"

I could hardly believe it! I'd given the paperback book "Have A Great Day!" to Todd's friends and family in memory of him after his death. This book was very special to Todd and to me. After Todd's death, I'd found several of the daily readings from this book in a journal he'd kept for a class project.

The timing of this letter was perfect! Here it had arrived right on Todd's birthday. What better gift could I ever give Todd than to continue to allow the Lord to bring something positive out of his death?

Thank you, Lord, for yet another opportunity. * "Have a Great Day-Everyday!" was the Loyalty Month book in 1991. This hardback, positive thought for the daybook can be ordered from: The Peale Center 66 East Main Street Pauling, NY 12564 (1.866.713.7278) The letter that I wrote about my son, Todd, is registered as the Introduction in this book on Page 8.

The Mistake

by Kay Heitsch

"The way we choose to respond when others make mistakes can cause them to feel ashamed or can allow them to remember our kindness and share our stories with future generations." -- Michelle Sedas

When I read the above quote, I couldn't help but think of Doris.* Doris was a little lady who lived in the memory care unit. She had been a science teacher by profession, but she also was a very creative person. All around her room were dolls that she had made. They were the most unique dolls I'd ever seen; each was very different from the other.

From what I gathered from talking to Doris, she'd taken a class in doll making. While I was in her room, she took one of the dolls out of the case to show me. She said that this was the first doll she had ever made. This doll was very unusual with fine artwork. The ceramic skirt was made of delicate ruffles. I was amazed that anyone could do such unique work.

As Doris was holding the doll very carefully, she turned the doll so that I could see a slight break in one of the ruffles on the skirt. Then she said, "Would you like me to tell you about this?" Of course, I was curious to know what happened. Doris noted that on the way to class, she bumped the side of the skirt. She said she was devastated and almost didn't go to art class at all.

When it came to her turn to show the doll to the teacher, she had to point out the skirt's break. Doris felt for sure that the doll would be rejected because of it. Much to her surprise, the teacher told her she was just going to ignore this break and grade the doll on the other good qualities it had. Doris said this remark and attitude from the teacher changed her life. Doris said she knew if that teacher hadn't forgiven that tiny mistake, she would never have made the rest of the dolls.

The quote at the beginning expresses what happened to Doris. This teacher could have made Doris feel ashamed by her mistake. But because of her willingness to ignore the error, Doris was sharing her kindness to the next generation.

*Name has been changed.

A Better Plan

by Kay Heitsch

"Hello, is this Kay Heitsch?" 

I started to get used to hearing these words when I answered the phone after "In Loving Memory of Todd" went into print. I was thrilled to hear from people from all over the United States who had read the Plus Magazine letter. 

Dr. Peale's staff continued to stay in touch with me too. I enjoyed hearing from Ann, Dr. Peale's secretary, and Ric, the Plus Magazine editor. We had developed quite a friendship. I still remembered the prayer I'd prayed asking the Lord to meet Dr. Peale or his staff. I felt the prayer had been answered. 

However, the Lord had something else in mind, too. One day I received a brochure in the mail from the Peale Center. It was announcing Positive Thinking Seminars. I saw that one was being held in Cincinnati, Ohio. I lived in Dover, Ohio, at the time, so I felt this would be my perfect opportunity to meet Dr. Peale and his staff in person. I laid the brochure on the counter in the kitchen and prayed over it many times. The Positive Thinking Seminar in Cincinnati came and went, but I was unable to attend. I was very disappointed. 

One day I went out to the mailbox, not expecting anything special when I saw a letter from the Peale Center. I could see this letter had a regular stamp, so I knew it wasn't bulk mail. I ran inside and opened it. I couldn't believe my eyes when I read the letter. The words, "Kay, you have been chosen by Dr. Peale to receive his Norman Vincent Peale Award for Positive Thinking. Dr. Peale will be presenting you with this award in person. You will be receiving the award at the Positive Thinking Seminar in Atlanta, Georgia." What? I ran and grabbed the old brochure, and sure enough, right under the Positive Thinking Seminar in Cincinnati, Ohio, was Atlanta, Georgia. I hadn't even seen Atlanta, Georgia; I was too focused on Cincinnati, Ohio. 

This taught me a valuable lesson. Sometimes we get our hearts set on something we think we want (Cincinnati, Ohio) when the Lord has a much better plan (Atlanta, Georgia).