Gratitude
Volume 3, Issue 3
Art By Eden Voss
By Justin Wang
From Kant's deontology to the contemporary theories on natural inclination, philosophers have long debated whether gratitude is something we owe or something we act out spontaneously. Is saying "thank you" repayment of a moral debt, or an authentic expression that must naturally originate from the heart?
An Entry from Friendsgiving
By Azara Mathur
On a whim, I took Friendsgiving very seriously last year. Through snippets of chaos from throughout the night, as written (but heavily censored) from my own diary, I discovered the magical properties of this pseudo-holiday.
By Liam Lincoln
The 2018 NFL Draft. An iconic event for many, a life-changing one for my dad and me. This event showed the depth of love between my father and me. We had an experience that not many others can say they’ve had, and we did it together. I’ll always be grateful
By Munira Takalkar
More than a century after Rudyard Kipling justified imperialism as a “burden,” its ghost lingers in modern aid. From Kony 2012 to Haiti’s NGO-dependency, Western saviorism oversimplifies conflict and recasts control as charity. It speaks for communities rather than with, demanding gratitude from those it claims to save.
By Margareta T
When I reread the childhood book The Giving Tree to my little sister, I realized how much the book resembled the relationship I have with my mother. Each page reflected the countless ways she’s given herself to me, piece by piece, until I finally saw how much of her love I had been taking for granted.
Meet our 2025-26 Team
By Ashley Park
In Korean, 정 (jung) is often described as an untranslatable kind of connection. Often described as a feeling that lingers between people through care and familiarity, I’ve come to define the term not through obligation or nostalgia, but in small, consistent gestures of gratitude. Across time zones and distance, my friendship with a non-biological sister have come to shape my own definition of 정.
By Chase Chuavon
We’re always told to give thanks—“Don’t forget to say thank you,” “Let’s all say thank you before we leave.” But what about receiving thanks? I’ve never been quite comfortable with the sincerity of real gratitude. So I ran a little experiment to see if I was alone—and ended up discovering why genuine gratitude feels so rare today.
What’s Hot
A collection of timely articles commenting on current day events
Performing Morality: How the Turkey Pardon Lets America Forgive Itself
By Vivian Jiang
Each Thanksgiving, the president’s turkey pardon serves as a familiar spectacle of humor and compassion. But beneath the smiles and feathers is a national ritual of moral convenience, pardoning the nation and the president’s hypocrisy as easily as a bird.
By Naomi Bach
The hostages have arrived back home from Gaza, and our world is filled with gratitude. But when the celebration fades, how long will that gratitude last?
The Voices Behind The Spark
Hear from our contributors on why you should read The Spark. Discover what we’ve written about in past issues, what Gratitude means to us for Issue 3, and meet the voices behind the essays.
By Kolb Sun
By Lillian Sutton
Two months ago, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints suffered a violent attack from a man driven by hate. But violence doesn’t begin with a gun. Rather, it begins with the way we talk about each other.
By Bruce Zhang
As Israel faces war and political division in 2025, Benjamin Netanyahu remains both its most influential and most polarizing figure. His 2022 autobiography, Bibi: My Story, offers a rare window into the mind of the man who has shaped Israel’s destiny for three decades, revealing how he sees himself, his enemies, and the nation he leads.