“The Thankful Jar,” Friend, November 2020
The Thankful Jar
The author lives in Colorado, USA.
Illustrations by Peter Donnelly
Mrs. Jennings held up a big glass jar for everyone in Henry’s class to see. “This is a Thankful Jar. Every day, I’ll ask one of you to share something you’re thankful for.”
Henry raised his hand. “Like what?”
“Anything,” Mrs. Jennings said. “Your family. A pet. Your friends. I’ll write down what you say and put it in the jar.”
How could Henry choose only one thing? All day he thought about the Thankful Jar. When Mommy picked him up, he couldn’t wait to tell her all about it. “I want to make a Thankful Jar for home! We can all write down things we’re thankful for. Maybe we can fill the whole jar!”
“Great idea!” Mommy said.
“Will you help me?” he asked. “I can’t spell all the words.”
“Of course I will.”
While Henry ate lunch, he thought of what he was thankful for. He waited while Mommy put his baby sister in her crib. Finally, Mommy helped him find a big jar. She cut some paper into wide strips. Henry grabbed a crayon.
“How do you spell ‘sister’?” he asked.
Mommy spelled the word out loud. Henry carefully wrote the letters down. She helped him spell sunshine and brothers and Daddy and snow and Primary and hermit crabs and other words. It took a long time to write them all. By the time Henry finished, his fingers were tired!
But Henry still had one more thing to write. He wrote Mommy on a slip of paper without any help at all. Then he showed Mommy what he had written.
“Look, Mommy!” Henry said. “I’m thankful for you!”
Mommy gave him a big hug. “I’m thankful for you too.”
Henry smiled. He was happy he had so many things to be thankful for.