Today’s reading of the one thankful leper who was cured recalls how St. Ignatius wisely began his five point examination of conscience with the posture of thankfulness. From this vantage point, two realities come into view. The first is the realization of gratitude for those things we have received. Gratitude makes us realize that much of what we need comes from others and we recognize our dependence on those who provide and enable the means for our daily life. The second benefit of thankfulness is that it provides us with a list of our values, since we are thankful for those things that we have identified as priorities in our lives. This provides us with an opportunity to step back and examine what it is that we do value and those decisions that we make considering these values.