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The Gratitude Campaign
January 12, 2008
Stop and think for a minute. How many times in your life, have you taken time out of your busy day, to observe the people around you? How many times, have you thought about the contribution that a person makes to our society and taken a moment to show your appreciation for what they do? Like perhaps, the firefighter, whose job it is, to respond to fires in the city they serve, the police officer, whose job it is to enforce the laws and ensure that you’re safe, maybe the paramedic who responds to the call for emergency medical assistance and perhaps saves a life, or even the Soldier whose job it is to respond around the world at a moments notice to ensure that people are safe and free from tyranny and injustice. Stop and think about it. Set your political beliefs aside and really think about the last time you took a moment to let anyone, who makes a difference in the lives of others, know, that they’re appreciated for the job that they do.
Often, as we go about our day to day lives, we cross paths with people who make an impact in their neighborhoods, their workplace, their local communities, their counties, their state or even in our country. Just as often, we don’t take the time to say thanks. Maybe because it feels awkward to us, maybe because we don’t wish to make that person feel uncomfortable, or perhaps, we just don’t take the time to do so, for whatever reason. Maybe our reason is that we’re in a hurry or that person seems to be in a hurry and we don’t want to impose. Think about how often, you’ve wished that someone would have taken a moment of their time to tell you thanks for a job well done and how it would have made you feel, if they’d done so.
Yesterday, one of my co-workers sent me an email with a link to a webpage, that I’d like to share with our readers. That page, The Gratitude Campaign really got me thinking about how often people in our society take the time to show their appreciation for each other, for the jobs they do or the service that they perform. I’d like to share the story of The Gratitude Campaign.
For the past several years as I’ve been traveling around the country, I’ve been approaching soldiers in the airports and thanking them for serving for us. On several occasions I have noticed that it felt a little awkward for both of us. There are several reasons, some of which I am even just now learning as I produce this film and talk to more soldiers. But they have always appreciated being thanked, and I have always felt better having expressed my gratitude.
I started to think that it would be nice if civilians had a gesture or sign that they could use to say “thank you” quickly and easily without even having to approach. I did some research and found the sign that we are now using.
Is this limited to the military? Not at all. If you look around you I’m sure that you’ll find lots of people who are serving their communities, from local to global. If you appreciate their service, give them a sign. Say “thank you.”
Take a moment to watch the video and see how much of an impact, this simple idea can make.
The sign we are using is intended to communicate
“thank you from the bottom of my heart. ”To make the sign simply place your hand on your heart
as though you’re saying the Pledge of Allegiance. Then
pull your hand down and out, bending at the elbow
(not the wrist), stopping for a moment at about the belly button with your hand flat, palm up, angled toward the person you’re thanking.According to Norman Heimgartner, Ed.D., author of “Behavioral Traits of Deaf Children†and former Professor of Education at the University of Puget Sound, this sign originated in France in the late 1700’s, and was published in “Theorie des Signesâ€, a dictionary of signs by the Abbe Sicard. The sign was brought to the United States in 1816 by the Reverend Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, founder of Gallaudet University, who later modified it to start at the chin rather than at the heart. That sign is now the standard sign for “thank you†in American Sign Language. The original sign, starting at the heart, is less commonly known today and might now be considered “slangâ€. For more information on American Sign Language, please see American Sign Language Teachers Association.
Isn’t that easy? There’s been so much discussion here as well as on other blogs about what people do to show their support of the Troops and the people at The Gratitude Campaign have made it so simple and easy to do. While, for many of us, it’s second nature to go up to a Soldier that we see and tell them how much we appreciate them, for so many others it’s uncomfortable to do so. This makes it easy for each of us, to show our appreciation for those who do so much in our society. I challenge everyone, especially those of you who find it hard to have anything good to say about the job our Troops are doing, to try it and let us know how it worked for you.
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