Five People We Should Thank On A Daily Basis

“Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty. All the great sages such as Narada, Asita, Devala, and Vyasa proclaim this of You, and now You Yourself are declaring it to me.” (Bhagavad-gita, 10.12-13)

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अर्जुन उवाच
परं ब्रह्म परं धाम
पवित्रं परमं भवान्
पुरुषं शाश्वतं दिव्यम्
आदि-देवम् अजं विभुम्
आहुस् त्वाम् ऋषयः सर्वे
देवर्षिर् नारदस् तथा
असितो देवलो व्यासः
स्वयं चैव ब्रवीषि मे

arjuna uvāca
paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma
pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān
puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ divyam
ādi-devam ajaṁ vibhum
āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve
devarṣir nāradas tathā
asito devalo vyāsaḥ
svayaṁ caiva bravīṣi me

1. Healthcare workers

“It is a global pandemic. No one knows the accurate death count or even the number of people infected. You hear these horror stories. The mortality rate floats on a daily basis, from one extreme to another. I am not that concerned, but everyone else is. Businesses shut down. Schools closed. People forced to work from home.

“In the thick of it all, we have the warriors on the battlefield. These are the healthcare professionals. They do their best to save lives every time they go to work, but especially today people are taking notice. They applaud and cheer at designated times of the day. I’m not sure how much difference that makes, but I guess it is a way to show appreciation for people who put themselves at risk through providing treatment.”

2. Truckers

“These people are usually on the receiving end of the polar opposite in treatment. Who actually prefers seeing a giant truck on the road? You never want to be stuck behind one. They cause traffic and congestion. Such a loud sound, too.

“Yet the people driving these trucks deserve just as much applause as the nurses and doctors. Without this kind of sacrifice, no one would have any supplies. The governor of a particular state is crying on television that he needs someone else to supply him enough ventilators. This should have been his responsibility all along, but no one wants to think rationally during these times.

“Anyway, those ventilators can’t get transported without truck drivers. In the modern world we wouldn’t get anything we need without this kind of transportation, which involves long days and little sleep. Thank you so much to the people who make that sacrifice.”

3. Farmers

“Just as money doesn’t grow on trees, the food on the shelves of the supermarkets does not appear by magic. Someone had to take the time to grow the food, and for little profit. The farmers do not sit in an expensive and cushioned office chair and worry about what restaurant they will visit for lunch.

“Instead, they get up early and work hard outside, in the fields. There is no guarantee of a sufficient yield, as mother nature might have different ideas in a particular year. Yet these farmers produce enough to feed the entire world, if necessary. They deserve so much appreciation.”

4. All taxpayers

“We applaud the doctors and nurses, but let’s be honest, they are paid pretty well. I am not saying they don’t deserve their salaries. They chose a profession with a higher monetary reward than most, and they earn every penny.

“But we should not forget the taxpayers who fund many of these hospitals and the insurance systems on which they rely. These taxpayers also bear the burden of super-high premiums, which are sometimes more expensive than a monthly rent or mortgage payment. Thank you to these people for ensuring that our government has enough money to deal with these national emergencies.”

5. The Supreme Personality of Godhead

It is interesting to see that the government designates a time for certain professionals to receive praise and applause, but they never think of the person supplying the needs for everyone, including the animal species. Stand up and clap for those we visibly acknowledge during a time of crisis, but the wise person sees how everything is interwoven.

That is to say, without God we would have nothing. Without His rain and sunlight the food would not grow. The farmers would not have anything to place on the trucks, and the drivers would have nothing to transport. The doctors would have no equipment to use and the government would have no resources to pay people to help.

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada compares praising the Supreme Lord to watering the root of a tree. The rest of the connected branches and leaves automatically get nourished. This means that worshiping Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, should be the first priority.

It should not be relegated to the end of life or to times of distress. His glories are endless, and devoted souls like Arjuna never tire of hearing of them. That celebrated bow-warrior of the Pandava dynasty heard those glories directly from Krishna, and fortunately for the world those words have been preserved for the future through the beautiful Sanskrit verses of the Bhagavad-gita.

In Closing:

By their bravery and sacrifice awed,

So now designated time to applaud.

Seeing daily the suffering face,

Working hard the disease to erase.

But others too should not forget,

Where one weakness and entire chain upset.

Appreciative most of Krishna needing,

Who the entire universe feeding.