In the wake of the country’s economic downward spiral, we wonder, how do we explain to those that don’t understand why their lives are shifted so rapidly and affected by the times? They say “choose wisely for your destiny waits”, but what about those who are afforded no choice? To explain to the little ones that have fallen on hard circumstances that life is unfair would be a disservice. So many children have been affected by the hardships the country has encountered that more and more philanthropies are struggling to provide for them.

The ability to give is just that, a gift. The ability to understand gratitude is fathomed into how much we take for granted and those that have the most should give the most. It’s not the hand you are dealt but the way you play your cards.

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. -- Sometimes it's great to be able to say, "Thank you."

Jim Kurtz got that chance Thursday; he was the runner who suffered cardiac arrest towards the finish line of this year's AJC Peachtree Road Race.

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Upon his collapse, nearby runners and watchers notified Marci Searles, an EMT with Grady Memorial Hospital who works the race as a bike team volunteer.

Searles got right to action. Joined soon by another bike team member, she administered CPR and within minutes, brought Kurtz back to life.

"He woke up and said, 'Why do you have your hands on my chest?'" Searles recalled. "I said, 'I'm performing CPR.' He said, 'On who?'

"I said, 'On you ...'"