Today is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada. In keeping with both the theme of the day and St. Francis, whose feast we celebrated last week, I'd like to offer a story told me by a fellow priest I met at an ACW event north of Toronto.
He was at his cottage in the highlands, reading on the front porch, when he heard a rustle. Looking up, he saw a squirrel being chased by a cat. Although he would normally have done nothing more than notice, this time he acted. He put down his book and chased the cat away with a shout. The two animals disappeared and he returned to his book.
He was distracted an hour or so later when he heard another rustle. Looking up, he didn't see the cat again chasing the squirrel as he expected. Instead, it was the squirrel, a nut in its mouth, scampering through the leaves. As the priest watched, it dropped the nut on the step of the cottage, stood there a moment, and then scampered away, leaving the thunderstruck priest behind.
"Was that the same squirrel?" he asked. "I didn't really pay attention to the one I helped. And if it was, why did he leave the nut? Was that gratitude? Do animals even feel gratitude?"
We chatted about squirrels, who usually take and hide nuts rather than leave them in the open. We wondered why a squirrel would do that, as we'd never heard of squirrels behaving that way.We had an interesting discussion about animals and emotions, but none of us could offer any explanation other than that the squirrel he'd assisted had returned with a gift.
Today, as we offer our thanks to God, let us offer a gift to the animals who enrich our lives so much. And it is our hope that your Thanksgiving Day is filled with happiness, love and true gratitude.
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