Father, We Thank You

by Ralph Waldo Emerson, Mark Graham (Illustrator)

Presents an illustrated version of the poem about how the beauties of nature inspire the heart with gratitude. By the illustrator of Come Meet Muffin.

Genres: Poetry, Thanksgiving, Picture Books, Christian, Nonfiction, Nature

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in Boston in 1803. Educated at Harvard and the Cambridge Divinity School, he became a Unitarian minister in 1826 at the Second Church Unitarian. The congregation, with Christian overtones, issued communion, something Emerson refused to do. "Really, it is beyond my comprehension," Emerson once said, when asked by a seminary professor whether he believed in God. (Quoted in 2,000 Years of Freethought edited by Jim Haught.) By 1832, after the untimely death of his first wife, Emerson cut loose from Unitarianism. During a year-long trip to Europe, Emerson became acquainted with such intelligentsia as British writer Thomas Carlyle, and poets Wordsworth and Coleridge. He returned to the United States in 1833, to a life as poet, writer and lecturer. Emerson inspired Transcendentalism, although never adopting the label himself. He rejected traditional ideas of deity in favor of an "Over-Soul" or "Form of Good," ideas which were considered highly heretical. His books include Nature (1836), The American Scholar (1837), Divinity School Address (1838), Essays, 2 vol. (1841, 1844), Nature, Addresses and Lectures (1849), and three volumes of poetry. Margaret Fuller became one of his "disciples," as did Henry David Thoreau.

The best of Emerson's rather wordy writing survives as epigrams, such as the famous: "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines." Other one- (and two-) liners include: "As men's prayers are a disease of the will, so are their creeds a disease of the intellect" (Self-Reliance, 1841). "The most tedious of all discourses are on the subject of the Supreme Being" (Journal, 1836). "The word miracle, as pronounced by Christian churches, gives a false impression; it is a monster. It is not one with the blowing clover and the falling rain" (Address to Harvard Divinity College, July 15, 1838). He demolished the right wing hypocrites of his era in his essay "Worship": ". . . the louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons" (Conduct of Life, 1860). "I hate this shallow Americanism which hopes to get rich by credit, to get knowledge by raps on midnight tables, to learn the economy of the mind by phrenology, or skill without study, or mastery without apprenticeship" (Self-Reliance). "The first and last lesson of religion is, 'The things that are seen are temporal; the things that are not seen are eternal.' It puts an affront upon nature" (English Traits , 1856). "The god of the cannibals will be a cannibal, of the crusaders a crusader, and of the merchants a merchant." (Civilization, 1862). He influenced generations of Americans, from his friend Henry David Thoreau to John Dewey, and in Europe, Friedrich Nietzsche, who takes up such Emersonian themes as power, fate, the uses of poetry and history, and the critique of Christianity. D. 1882.
Ralph Waldo Emerson was his son and Waldo Emerson Forbes, his grandson.

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emerson’s prayer of thanks for the wonders of creation is presented in picture book format.
The simple but beautiful text includes the repeated refrains “Father, we thank you” and “Father in heaven, we thank you.” This lends itself well to a participatory read-aloud as a group expression of praise.

Illustrations are vibrant oil paintings that expand on the text, inspired by the illustrator’s youth in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah.

Tie-ins:
Devotions/Bible: prayer, praise
Seasonal: Thanksgiving
Art: Oil painting, impressionist style
ELA: Poetry, rhyming words, repeated words
Reading level: F

[Maeve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem (with illustrations) about thankfulness for the Earth.

There's an obvious Christian slant; so I probably won't be sharing it in storytime.

[Barbara Lovejoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it when I find favorite poems that have been made into books! The illustrations are great!

[Mommywest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ralph Waldo Emerson's beautiful prayer-poem thanking our Creator for this amazing world is accompanied by lovely impressionistic illustrations by Mark Graham in this wonderful book. Interestingly, Mr. Graham grew up hiking in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, where we live, and his illustrations are based on those family outings. We see a family hiking and camping and enjoying the beautiful settings surrounding them as we are reminded of the simple yet profound pleasures of the blessings our Heavenly Father has given us in the creation of this beautiful earth. Every one of my children, from my oldest, a teen, to my youngest, a 3-year-old, felt the beauty and wonder of this book. It was especially poignant to read because we spent this summer camping in a national park and in a national forest and hiking many beautiful trails in the very mountains Mr. Graham portrayed. Highly recommended for any time of year! We used this for our home preschool unit on gratitude and Thanksgiving.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grandiose landscape pictures accompany the simple text, a prayer of gratitude to God for all that nature is. I consider this a great read to start discussing thankfulness with children as Thanksgiving approaches.

[E & E’s Mama · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful poem by Emerson accompanied by gorgeous impressionistic watercolors of nature. It was a great way to talk about God’s beautiful creation.

Read at age 2. Would be appropriate for older kids too

[Mainchild]

PIC Emer

[Joey Gremillion · Rating 4 out of 5]

STUNNING illustrations and nice ecumenical book by Ralph Waldo Emerson, a Unitarian minister turned lecturer/poet

[KC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations with special thanks for our outdoors

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful prayer!