My eyes are half closed as I am mentally deducting the time that has passed until the food on our plates technically qualifies for spoilage. The chicken is probably 10 degrees over the temperature marker of being safe to eat and still it sits at room temperature. The food poisoning time bomb is counting down and yet we are still paused before we can eat it safely. The voice barely above a whisper is what is delaying us.

“….and thank you for the forks. Thank you for the plates. Thank you for the napkins. Thank you for the flowers. Thank you for the rain. Thank you for the dirt. Thank you for the worms. Thank you for slime. Thank you for water…..”

It’s the prayer that never ends being delivered by the 4 year old girl.

My head jerks a little as I realize I am starting to doze off. The chicken is indeed at the spoilage time and I whisper my own prayer that God takes pity on us sparing us the pains of food poisoning and hopes the prayer being said has included blessing of the food. I also pray that if there is an ER visit that we can get a reduced rate due to a large group discount.

“…thank you for smiling. Thank you for grass. Thank you for bug spray. Thank you for band-aids. Thank you for my mommy, daddy, sisters, brothers, dogs, mimi, poppy, memaw, papa and all the people and all the peoples family and for the uncle’s sister’s aunt’s brother twice removed that talked to her son’s friend’s who has a hamster that bit the friend who met the teacher that has a sister….(just kidding on that last part)

I finally began to zero in on her words as it became apparent she was about to end because everything she had ever seen, experienced and just heard about had been covered. Then she closed with “Thank you for yesterday, today and tomorrow. Amen.” and my heart caught.

As I watched everyone dive into the meal that was borderline unsafe due to the prayer that never ends; I thanked God for this little girl who reminds me that our prayers should not end with just our blessings; but rather to go on without end. Her only prayer “duty” was to bless our meal. Rather than focus on the blessing in front of her, she did her best to recall everything in detail that she was thankful for.

To pray about and be thankful for every little thing that we have ever seen, experienced or even just heard about. To be thankful for our yesterdays, our todays and especially our tomorrows.

Dear Father,

May I always pray with the heart of a young child and not just be thankful for the blessings right in front of me that are easy to see, but to instead open my eyes to every little thing that you have provided. To know that your hand is in the the beauty of the flowers, necessary in the dismal rains, comforting just like the creation of a band-aid and right down to the “uncle’s sister’s aunt’s brother twice removed that talked to her son’s friend’s who has a hamster that bit the friend who met the teacher that has a sister.”

Amen.

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