Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

It’s Thanksgiving Weekend in Canada

As a young boy I was a voracious reader of all kinds of books and poetry, including works such as “Black Beauty” and the Bible, (which pleased my mother greatly), and biographies on leaders of Nazi Germany and early Soviet Russian leaders, (which pleased my mother much less). I hasten to state my interest in these two ideologies was not as a proponent of their views but rather an opponent of their opinions and atrocities.

One of my favorite possessions as a child was a little book called “A Child’s Garden Of Verses” written in 1885 by Robert Louis Stevenson, who also wrote “Treasure Island” and “The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde.” (Likely one of my reasons for my appreciation of Stevenson’s work was that he, like my father whom I so admired, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland).

“A Child’s Garden Of Verses” was a collection of largely unrelated poems, including one which he called “Happy Thoughts.” This little poem has only two lines:

“The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.”

Stevenson was not a “happy” man with a pleasant life, spending the majority of his life suffering from various afflictions, dying at the young age of 44. Many times I wondered how this man, facing so many setbacks could be “as happy as kings”. It apparently wasn’t his faith, (it seems Stevenson turned his back on the faith of his father preacher).

“The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.”

Today I sit along the shoreline of English Bay in Vancouver, British Columbia, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. All around me people are experiencing the gorgeous sun-filled weather of our Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. People are strolling along the walkway, or sitting on the grass, more are jogging down the trails. On the water are dozens of boats of all sizes and shapes, rushing about.

Although I can’t know the thoughts of any of these people, as I look in their faces most seem very solemn, even sad.

Wait, here comes a man walking his little pint-sized dog. And the dog is tearing about, jumping high in the air for no apparent reason, flipping down on his back, back up again, I swear there is a huge smile on that doggy face!

What right does this little dog have to be so obviously happy? The leash held tightly in his master’s hand allows him to go no further than three feet; there is no freedom. The dog’s master decides when, or if, this dog can come to this beach area enjoying the gorgeous surroundings. Yet this animal seems to be the only man or beast showing “happiness.”

“The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.”

Throughout my life I have felt that the crux of this tiny “Happy Thoughts” poem was the word “happy” but now I am not so sure.

I have discovered a new key word in an old classic. The word is “should”.

“The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.”

In spite of illness, circumstance and troubles here and throughout the world, unquestionably I should be “as happy as kings.” In fact, when I consider the current day “kings” of royalty, politics, finance and industry, and compare this to my beautiful family and my life, it is obvious I should be . .  must be . . . the happiest and most thankful king!

“The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.”

The question is: are we . .  am I?

Here in Canada this is our Thanksgiving weekend. For most of you Thanksgiving comes later on in the year. Regardless of when Thanksgiving falls in your calendar I suggest we all mark every day as “Thanksgiving Day” and give proper thanks to the source of our blessings.
“The world is so full of such numberless things,
I’m sure we must give thanks to our King of Kings.”

Our Book

In the late 1970’s I worked for a newly formed business and industry training organization, a new branch of a very old home study correspondence…

Read More… from Our Book

X