When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so

“When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so you can have an education and build your body — it’s a blessing.” Thus spoke Lou Gehrig, the Iron Horse of baseball, a man whose strength on the field was rivaled only by the gentleness of his heart. These words, simple in form, carry the thunder of gratitude and the quiet majesty of humility. They remind us that behind every triumph stands the labor of unseen hands — the parents, the workers, the givers who sacrifice their comfort so that others may rise.

In the days of old, the poets told of heroes — of warriors and kings who conquered lands. But Lou Gehrig speaks of a different kind of heroism: the daily, unending toil of a mother and a father, who labor not for glory, but for love. Their sweat is the unseen foundation upon which the dreams of their children are built. They rise before dawn, they work until the stars are kindled again, and through their struggle, the next generation learns the sacred meaning of blessing — not as a gift freely given, but as a treasure born of sacrifice.

Gehrig himself knew this truth in the marrow of his bones. Born to immigrant parents who worked tirelessly in New York City — his father as a laborer, his mother as a maid and cook — young Lou saw what love looked like in the form of weary hands and quiet endurance. While others slept, his mother scrubbed floors so her son could attend school and play ball. While others dreamed of comfort, she dreamed only that her child would have a better life. And so, when Lou Gehrig became one of the greatest athletes of all time, he never forgot the soil from which he grew. His success was not his alone — it was the flowering of their lifelong devotion.

This is the meaning of “it’s a blessing.” It is not mere good fortune, nor luck that falls like rain from the sky. It is something earned through generations — through the faith of parents who give all they have, and the gratitude of children who recognize that gift. In our modern age, we are tempted to believe that we rise by our own strength, that our victories are self-made. But Gehrig’s words call us back to truth: that no life is built alone. Every education, every opportunity, every triumph is carried upon the shoulders of those who came before.

Consider the story of Booker T. Washington, born into slavery yet lifted by the devotion of a mother who could neither read nor write, but who burned with the dream that her child would learn. She walked miles to find him scraps of books, believing that through education, he would be free. Washington’s rise to greatness — as a teacher, a leader, a builder of men — was not his achievement alone, but a fulfillment of his mother’s sacred labor. So it is in all lives touched by love: the unseen sacrifices of parents become the visible strength of their children.

Thus, let us give honor where it is due. Let us see in the hands of our parents the proof of grace. Let us not forget those who stood behind us when we were weak, who believed in our future when we could not yet see it. Gratitude is the highest form of wisdom, for it transforms success into reverence, and ambition into service. To forget one’s roots is to lose one’s soul; to remember them is to walk with humility and strength.

So, my child, live in such a way that your parents’ labor is not in vain. Use your education not only to rise, but to lift others. Use your strength not for pride, but for purpose. When you reach the heights, look down not in arrogance, but in remembrance. For as Lou Gehrig taught — the truest blessing is not in what we achieve, but in those who made our achievements possible. To honor them is to live rightly; to forget them is to live blind.

Therefore, give thanks daily for the hands that built your life. If you have parents who sacrificed for your education, your health, your future, then you have known one of life’s greatest miracles. Cherish it. Live worthy of it. And when the day comes that you labor for another — for your own child, for your people, for your world — may you pass on that same sacred blessing, so that the light of love and gratitude never dies from among humankind.