“If a fellow isn’t thankful for what he’s got, he isn’t likely to be thankful for what he’s going to get.”
—Frank A. Clark
Often, we forget to take time and appreciate all the things that we have.
Being able to enjoy your own home, new clothes, gadgets, and being able to eat three times a day are just some things we often take for granted.
When Joe and Jamie Walker stopped as they arrived at their home, Abraham and his older brother, James, thought they were in a “second heaven.”
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“You pass through this before you go to the big heaven. That is what I believe so.” Abraham told CBS News.
You might wonder, why would a young man think of a mere house as second heaven?
The story of Abraham and James will leave you speechless and will definitely make you cry.
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These boys had a tough start in life. They were originally from Sierra Leone and were homeless.
The local orphanage accepted them and gave them shelter and after some time, Joe and Jamie Walker met the boys.
The couple adopted the brothers because they didn’t want them to be separated.
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Joe and Jamie, along with Abraham and James flew to Charlotte, North Carolina after the adoption papers were completed last fall.
The Walkers felt so happy as they saw the wonder in the eyes of the boys.
“Every little thing that we take for granted — coming home from the airport, I hit the button to open up the front gate — ‘Dad!’” Joe Walker shared with CBS News with a smile.
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Can you imagine being homeless and having nothing?
Now, these boys belong to a loving home with all the things they didn’t imagine they would ever have.
“Everything is magic to them,” he added.
Every time they were introduced to something new, they would express how amazed they were. Even a simple carwash was like magic for them.
One day, last May 20, the family surprised Abraham on his 12th birthday.
In the video posted by Jamie, she walks in with an orange cake full of candles, and there, his name, Abraham.
The young man cried.
He was shocked and didn’t know what to say. Tears fell from his eyes, and you can see how happy he was.
In Sierra Leone, they didn’t celebrate their birthdays. In fact, the boys were not sure when they were born.
It was the first time he had his very own cake. It was his first time celebrating his birthday.
“I never celebrate them. I never knew it was my birthday,” Abraham said.
Instead of blowing the cake, Abraham ran towards Joe, his father, and hugged him. Then he ran to Jamie and hugged her.
Abraham cried.
Everyone kept on telling him to blow his cake, and he did. Then he ran again to his father and hugged him again.
They all laughed because the young man forgot to make a wish. He didn’t know that he had to make a wish because this was his first time.
“When I see the cake, I thought that is the most beautifulest thing I’ve ever seen,” Abraham said. “It’s not just a birthday cake. It’s a blessing cake.”
What a wonderful term from a young man for something that is so common for us. Most of the time, we even fail to appreciate how precious a cake is.
It’s not just a treat for someone’s birthday.
A cake, for Abraham, is another symbol of the blessing that he’s enjoying now, the feeling of belonging to a family and the blessing of having people who love him and his brother.
These boys are wonderful, and their viral video could teach all of us a lesson.
Appreciate what you have. Be grateful for everything that you’re enjoying.
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Just being with your family, being healthy, and being able to eat and go to school, is enough for us to know that each day is a blessing.
Watch the touching birthday greeting here, and watch the full feature below.
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