Henry Van Dyke, in _The Outlook_, expresses the spontaneous nature
of true gratitude:
Do you give thanks for this, or that? No, God be thanked,
I am not grateful
In that cold calculating way, with blessings ranked
As one, two, three, and four--that would be hateful!
I only know that every day brings good above
My poor deserving;
I only feel that on the road of life true Love
Is leading me along and never swerving.
Whatever turn the path may take to left or right,
I think it follows
The tracing of a wiser hand, through dark and light,
Across the hills and in the shady hollows.
Whatever gifts the hours bestow, or great or small,
I would not measure
As worth a certain price in praise, but take them all
And use them all, with simple, heartfelt pleasure.
For when we gladly eat our daily bread, we bless
The hand that feeds us;
And when we walk along life’s way in cheerfulness,
Our very heart-beats praise the Love that leads us.
(1294)
=Gratuities=--See RIDICULE, APT.