The Memorable Face of Gratitude…

The persistent tagging at my jacket from behind caught my attention. I turned around to investigate the source and was surprised to see the face of a small boy looking up at me. He was going on in a barrage of Spanish that I could barely make out and he seemed agitated. In his other hand he was holding out the toy truck we had just given him and he appeared to be giving it back to me.  After another unsuccessful attempt to understand him, I called someone over to help. Finally, I understood that he didn’t like his age-appropriate gift. He had mastered the courage to return it for exchange with what he really wanted; a soccer ball.

The boy proudly showing off
his soccer ball

The memorable face. It's like that
was the best gift he'd ever received

His mother stood aside, appearing embarrassed at the audacity of her son to be ‘picky’.  But within a short time, the boy drew the attention of everybody around, as he was the only one in the group to reject his gift. But, rather than admonition, he brought out admiration from the Canadians whose culture strongly encourages personal choice and decision-making. We had brought soccer balls in variety of colours, and we were further surprised as the little boy indicated that he wanted a blue/white ball. I couldn’t help but think with that attitude, that little boy was going far in his life.

And this brings me to gratitude. When I think of that day, one particular face stands out in my memory. I remember him more not for his courage to pursue his gift of choice, but more for how his face which later beamed more than all the hundred plus faces put together. And as I’ve always believed, gratitude and appreciation should be shown or spoken out, whether we’re receiving from a stranger, or from a close one.

I regret though that although that little happy face will remain with me for a long time, I don’t have a name for him. He was so happy with the ball that he scooted off for a test game faster than I could ask “¿Cómo te llamas?"

Enjoying the 'good game' already