I am grateful

God is in the details. It is the small gestures, the unexpected acts of loving kindness between friends or strangers, that momentarily connect us to something larger than ourselves. These interludes are brief holidays from the me-first attitude that permeates our culture. Guided by the classics—please, thank you, excuse me, you first and you’re welcome—we revert to humility and the understanding of equality that exists in the ground of our being. This Thanksgiving holiday, I am grateful for observing these acts of love:

• The life-affirming sign-bearers at the corner of 16th and J streets who attempt to rally our apathy into action against the war in Iraq.

• People who turn their cell phones off—completely—when attending all ticketed events and visiting restaurants and religious services.

• Poets and artists who understand that if they only practice their craft, their work is boring, and if they only practice their art, no one understands what they’re trying to say.

• Parents who expect progress, not perfection from their children.

• Shoppers who return carts to their corrals.

• Salesclerks and parking-lot attendants who put their personal phone calls on hold when a customer appears, so they can answer questions and even count change back.

• Those gentle people whose prayer nets are wider than their own needs and wants: “For my mother who has cancer and for anyone else suffering from this disease.”

• People who spay and neuter their pets.

• People who generously wave others into long lines of traffic.

• Neighbors who keep their music to themselves.

• Homeowners who replace lawns with xeriscapes or habitats for beneficial insects.

• Drivers who stop behind the crosswalk lane until pedestrians cross safely.

• The small caress that bespeaks the lover who truly knows our heart. The gentle touch of the healer who is deeply concerned about our welfare. The spare language of a friend who knows when to listen.

• Drivers who don’t think where they are going is more important than where the rest of us are headed.

• Those rare people who are direct in word and action.

• Friends you can call at 2 a.m." Friends who call you at 2 a.m." Employers who admit their faults and acknowledge their mistakes." Hikers who bring nothing home but memories." Drivers who park between the lines." People with the courage to change.