A Teacher’s Hand
a gift fromwww.PositiveChristianity.net
A first-grade teacher gave her class a simple but meaningful assignment:
Draw a picture of something for which you are thankful.
Most of the children came from modest circumstances, but they still had many things to appreciate—family, food, pets, toys.
Douglas, however, drew something entirely different.
Douglas was a different kind of boy—frail, withdrawn, often unhappy. While the other children ran and laughed at recess, he usually stood close beside the teacher. Behind his quiet eyes, one could sense a loneliness few understood.
When asked to draw something he was thankful for, Douglas drew a hand.
Nothing else. Just a single, empty hand.
His unusual picture sparked curiosity among his classmates.
Whose hand could it be?
“A farmer’s,” one child guessed, because farmers grow food.
“A police officer’s,” said another, because they protect us.
“God’s hand,” someone else suggested, because God feeds and cares for us.
The discussion continued until the teacher almost forgot the young artist sitting quietly at his desk.
When the class moved on to another activity, she knelt beside Douglas and gently asked, “Whose hand is it?”
The little boy looked down and softly replied, “It’s yours, teacher.”
She was suddenly flooded with memories—times she had taken his small hand in hers and walked him to the playground. Times she had said, “Take my hand, Douglas, let’s go outside,” or “Let me show you how to hold your pencil,” or “We’ll do this together.”
Of all the things he could have chosen, Douglas was most thankful for his teacher’s hand.
Brushing away a tear, she returned to her work—but she would never forget that moment.
This story is about more than gratitude. It is about influence.
It speaks to teachers who teach, parents who guide, friends who care, and neighbors who reach out. It reminds us how deeply a simple gesture can matter—especially to the “Douglases” of the world.
They may not always say thank you.
They may not always show it.
But they will remember the hand that reached out to them.
This week, use your hand—your time, your kindness, your presence—to reach out to someone who needs it.
To love your neighbor is often as simple as offering your hand.
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POSITIVE DAILY AFFIRMATION:
I ask for help when I need it, and my trust draws me to the person, or persons, who can help and who will be happy and blessed in doing it.
POSITIVE DAILY QUOTE:
“People often say that motivation doesn't last.Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily." Zig Ziglar