I always found his leadership to be a wonderful blend of humor and faith-filled insight. He had plenty of corny jokes that could lighten the mood of any room, and he also had a collection of well-used one-liners. “Remember this for life!” is what Father Larry would say when there was some important quote or idea that he wanted retreatants to take away. In speaking about reconciliation and healing, Father Larry often observed, “You can become bitter or you can become better.”

During several retreats, I heard Father Larry reflect that each of us is called to work on fostering an attitude of gratitude. I know this has always rung true for me. When I was very young, I remember mom and dad teaching me and my brother to recite our prayers at night. After praying the Lord’s Prayer, they encouraged us to name out loud the things that we were thankful for during the day just passed. It seemed like such a natural thing to do.

As we grow older, our adult selves can become jaded, forgetting the source of the blessings that we know each day. Those blessings include the beautiful, created world in which we live and move, the ingenuity and creativity that enliven our minds, the skills that flow from our hands, the love that is in our hearts. Blessings also include the people that are a part of our lives — those who surround us with love and those who challenge us to grow because they have a perspective that differs from our own. The simple fact that we can walk into a room, flip a switch, and there will be light is a blessing. That safe drinking water flows from the kitchen faucet is a blessing. The abundance and variety of food which nourishes our bodies is a blessing. That we live in a nation that allows us to worship as we choose, when we choose and where we choose, is a blessing. These are but a few that come easily to mind.

Our nation sets aside one day each year in November as our Thanksgiving Day. It is our national way of pausing to give thanks. Given the many blessings that we enjoy, I can’t help but wonder if one day of giving thanks is sufficient. With so much to be thankful for, I think Father Larry was right — we need to form an attitude of gratitude and nurture it daily. One simple way to do so is to take time each day to sit down with paper and pen and list a few of the blessings that we have been aware of that day. Then, after listing those blessings, we can make the time to prayerfully and wholeheartedly thank God for them, as it is God who is the ultimate source of each and every gift and blessing that we know and enjoy.

There is a thankful word in Greek that can sound a little odd to our English-speaking ears: eukaristo. It means “to give thanks.” In English, we say, “Eucharist.” Each time we gather for the celebration of the Eucharist, we give thanks to God for the blessings we know and share. We thank God for the gift of Jesus Christ, and Christ’s total self-gift to us on our behalf for our salvation. As we partake in the Eucharist, we pledge to live the gift that we receive, mindful that all we have is just that: gift from God. And so, thankfully, our journey in FAITH continues.