One of the blessings of getting older is to reflect upon life and all that you’ve been given. Reflecting on my life, I am thankful for my parents, family, and all the gifts I have been given.
I am blessed. I have parents who have been willing to give freely to me of themselves and have, in the process, given me many life-changing gifts. My parents and family have given me the gift of sacrifice, the gift of giving, the gift of culture, the gift of independence, the gift of education, the gift of learning, the gift of thinking for myself, the gift of courage, the gift of trust, the gift of wings to fly, the gift of learning about my eternal destiny, the gift of faith, and the gift of laughter.
Table of Contents
- The Gift of Sacrifice
- The Gift of Giving
- The Gift of Culture
- The Gift of Independence
- The Gift of Education
- The Gift of Learning
- The Gift of Thinking For Myself
- The Gift of Courage
- The Gift of Trust
- The Gift of Wings To Fly
- The Gift of Learning About My Eternal Destiny
- The Gift of Faith
- The Gift of Laughter
- Related Questions
The Gift of Sacrifice
When I think of my parents, one of the things that first comes to mind is sacrifice. My parents sacrificed a lot for my siblings and me; they went without so we could have.
I don’t think this is the kind of sacrifice a child can ever repay a parent. It is a sacrifice that is so profound and so deep that you will always be indebted to your parents because of their sacrifice for you. I will always be thankful to my parents for that sacrifice.
The Gift of Giving
I cannot count how often my parents had somebody over to dinner because they were alone. Or how often my parents did little acts of service to help someone, they knew needed help. Even today, service is still very much a part of their lives.
Today as I write this, my garage is filled to the brim with winter coats, blankets, and other things we have collected to give to the Hill tribe children in North Vietnam. It is getting cold here in Vietnam, and many children in the mountains do not have adequate winter coats or blankets to keep them warm throughout the winter.
I solely attribute this to my learning about service and what it means to give from my parents. I watched them give little acts of service to help someone in need. They never complained about doing service; instead, they were always happy to serve and help others.
This has greatly impacted my life and how I view giving and service. I thank my parents for their willingness to serve and give to those in need; they taught me what it means to give and serve others.
The Gift of Culture
My mother was born and raised in Sweden. During the holidays, our home is filled with many cultural traditions from Sweden. It is a great gift in my life to know about my ancestors and their traditions.
Our home always welcomed people from many different countries and walks of life. My father brought home many African students to have dinner with us.
I learned to appreciate people from many countries and cultures from a young age. This gift of culture has been a great gift in my life as I have met people from all walks of life.
The Gift of Independence
One day, I was upset about something, and I wanted my mother to go to the neighbors and complain about something that had happened. I wanted my mother to go and fight my fight for me. But she refused and said I needed to learn to handle it myself.
At the time, I was quite upset. I thought, “No, you’re my mother; you need to do it for me.” Like any good mother, she refused.
My parents taught and encouraged me to be independent. They would not fight my fights for me as they taught me to do it on my own.
I will always be thankful for them teaching me at a young age this lesson of independence. They taught me I needed to be brave enough, even in the face of challenges, and learn to stand on my own two feet.
Life is often unfair – challenges come, but we must learn to fight our fights. I am thankful to my parents for teaching me this important lesson.
The Gift of Education
When I was 14, I watched my mother graduate from college with her RN nursing degree. That same year she became a US citizen.
Even though I went to a high school where many of my classmates did not see the need to attend college, I always knew and understood that I would attend college. You see in our family, it was never “if” you will go to college but “where” will you will go to college. So I have now graduated from college at least three times with an undergraduate degree and two master’s degrees.
I owe this to my parents, who taught me that education and learning were important to life.
The Gift of Learning
I remember my father telling me I don’t care what grade you get; I care about what you have learned. There were many classes I took in college that I found extremely challenging. I remember one political science class that was so brutal after taking the final exam that I just sat on a bench and cried.
I had worked and studied so hard in that class. After the final exam, I knew I would probably only get a B in the class and not the A grade I hoped for. Then I remembered what my father had taught me; he didn’t care what grade I got but cared more about what I had learned and how hard I had worked.
I have often thought about this advice. I thought about how easy it would be to take the easy classes so that you could get a good grade. It is harder to take a difficult class that challenges you.
Somehow, those difficult classes I remember most and I learned the most from. Those tough classes taught me that I could stretch myself in ways I never knew were possible.
I am grateful to my parents, who gave me the gift of education and learning. They taught me that learning is lifelong and about stretching yourself and pushing yourself to do things you would not otherwise do.
The Gift of Thinking For Myself
My father listens to audiobooks all day long. This is something that I have picked up from him. Before, I listened to a lot of music, but I started listening to podcasts and audiobooks many years back.
I saw his example and realized I had a choice. I could fill my mind with learning and knowledge or listen to the latest pop song. I took my father’s example and filled my mind with learning and knowledge.
My parents gave me the gift of thinking for myself. They have taught me that I can think for myself. That I can learn for myself. And that I can and should have an educated opinion.
And I do always have an opinion. Whether people agree with me or not, I can think for myself. I am thankful to my parents for teaching me to have an opinion and think for myself.
The Gift of Courage
When I was 17, my parents allowed me to travel to Sweden to attend high school for 6 months. They encouraged me to do it.
They did not give me all the reasons why I should not go or tell me about all the terrible things that could happen, but they gave me the gift of courage to encourage me to go to Sweden.
As I have traveled around the world, I have seen the great gift for a parent to give their child the gift of courage. Many people in the world are afraid to go outside their own community.
My parents encouraged me to go out and explore and see the world. I’m sure there must have been times when they were afraid for my safety or they worried if I would return alive, but they always supported me and gave me the gift of courage to know that I could do or be anything.
The Gift of Trust
I learned to drive with my dad’s diesel Mercedes Benz. I am unsure why he trusted us to take out his car and allow us to drive it – but he did.
There were times when I got into accidents that were my fault. But even then, we were trusted to drive his Mercedes.
My parents gave me the gift of trust. I knew they trusted me as long as I lived worthy of that trust. I also knew the trust would be gone if I broke that trust. I am thankful to them for loving me enough to trust me.
The Gift of Wings To Fly
I have spent all my adult life living and working in Asia. Many times it has been tough. Many times I have struggled. But through it, all my parents have been there to love, support me, and help me financially when needed.
They believed in my dream. They believed in me. They helped give me wings to fly.
I cannot say Asia has always been easy. But I can say that I am better because of my time spent in Asia. And with great gratitude, I know I owe so much to my parents, who gave me the wings to fly and believe in me.
The Gift of Learning About My Eternal Destiny
As a child, I remember the early mornings when my mother would ring the bell to call us all to come downstairs before my father left for work so that we could kneel and say a family morning prayer. Of course, as a young child, there were many rumblings; why do we need to get up so early? Why do we have to do this?
But now, I am grateful to my parents for the foundation they gave me to know that I am a divine daughter of my Heavenly Father and that He loves me.
One of the greatest blessings of my life is that my parents taught me about my Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. I was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
From a very young age, my parents taught me that I was a child of God. That teaching has helped me know I have a divine eternal destiny.
And because of this divine eternal destiny, I have learned that what I do in life does matter – the kind of person I do matter – what I say does matter – what I become does matter.
The Gift of Faith
I am thankful that I grew up in a faith-filled home. I am grateful for the Sundays we all went to church together. The times we had family prayer and the times we worshipped together as a family.
I am thankful for my parents and sisters, with whom I can share my faith. I realize that this is a great blessing and that not everyone has it in their lives.
I am thankful for the many lessons and foundations of faith my parents gave me throughout my life.
The Gift of Laughter
Many times when we get together as a family, you can hear the laughter ringing out of the rooms. I have some sisters who have a pretty good sense of humor.
I am thankful I grew up in a home where we had laughter. Laughter can be healing as it will release happy chemicals into your brain. Laughter creates feelings of happiness.
I am thankful that I grew up in a home where I learned not to take myself too seriously. Sometimes, when something happens, I have been taught that I can laugh about it; I am thankful for this because it has helped me through some difficult situations to laugh about them and not cry.
I am grateful to my parents for all the gifts they have given me. I know that these 13 gifts barely scratch the surface of what I have been given. I will forever be indebted to my parents, Sharman and Anne-Marie Hummel, and all they have done for me.
Thank you so much, Mom and dad – I will always love you.
Related Questions
What Are Things You Discover By Doing Your Family History?
When you start on the journey to discover your family history, there are many wonderful things you can learn and discover through the discovery of your family and their history.
By researching your family history, you can learn about new family members you did not know about. You will learn about the history of the place where your family once lived. And finally, you can discover the traditions and culture of the country your ancestors once lived.
You can discover more by reading our blog 3 Things You Discover By Doing Your Family History by clicking here.
What Is The Purpose of Genealogy?
The purpose of genealogy is to study family, family history, and the tracing of our lineage or our ancestors. The purpose of genealogy goes far beyond the dates, names, and places of our ancestors. This is because as you do your genealogy, you begin to learn more about your family and yourself. Genealogy helps to unite and link families together as you discover things about your family that you did not know.
You can learn more by reading our blog What Is The Purpose of Genealogy? by clicking here.
