I’ve been thinking about that simple prayer of thanks I recited as a child. There’s something about it — it’s concise and unpretentious, yet honest and profound.
The author of this small blessing was Edith Rutter-Leatham and she lived in Durham, England. She published a small volume of poetry in 1913. That’s it. I scoured the internet for information and came up empty. She doesn’t have a Wikipedia page and her book can’t be found on Amazon. Edith was an obscure poet in Victorian England who is remembered for a simple four-line children’s table blessing. Not a bad legacy considering that a little girl in southwest Wisconsin in the 1960s put it to memory, and the now-grown woman is still thinking about it in 2021.
Let’s break it down.
Thank You for the world so sweet.
I know what you’re thinking. “Sweet? This world is sweet? Maybe back in 1913, but not in 2021!” I beg to differ. The sinking of the Titanic had recently shocked the world and World War I was about to break out. There is always turmoil somewhere on the planet. There is always beauty, too. God made us a sweet world, if we would only pay attention. Thank Him for the world, and you’ll begin to see more of its sweetness.
Thank You for the food we eat.
I am so thankful food tastes good. It wouldn’t have to, you know. God could have made nourishing mush with no taste to keep our bodies healthy. Instead, He created tomatoes and yeast and grains of wheat. He gave people the ingenuity to invent pizza. Glory halleluia! Thank Him for the food you eat, and you’ll begin to taste more of its goodness.
Thank You for the birds that sing.
What if birds didn’t sing? What would it be like to go for a morning walk and hear no birdsong? Even in town, the air is filled with chirps and tweets that we often ignore. God created a soundtrack that plays all day, every day. Birds that sing, cats that meow, cows that moo. Thank Him for the birds that sing, and you’ll begin to hear more of their melodies.
Thank You God for everything.
It’s good to have a broad-sweep statement like this. I wouldn’t be able to get through the day if I stopped to thank Him for everything. “Thank You Lord, for sleeping. Thank You for waking. Thank You for my pillow, for my bed, for my blankets. Thank you for toothpaste and bodily functions and the smell of coffee.” It would be a non-stop full-time job. Thank Him for everything and you’ll begin to live a life full of gratitude.
“The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.” Psalm 24:1
“Always give thanks to God the Father for everything.” Ephesians 5:20
a small drop of ink 
Thank you Lord for all these things to brighten our time here as well as comfort and console us in times of need.
Thank you Dinah for caring and sharing
I didn’t grow up with this prayer but see why you love it, thank you!
Thank you for reading!
Thank you for this contribution. I have spent the last hour searching for information. I am 83 years old. This is the table grace my mother taught me and my three younger brothers from when she would sing it before we could talk. I have been unable to find the simple sweet tune she taught us. The sung versions I have found are much less than pleasant to my ears.
Glad this was helpful! I’ve never heard the musical version of this prayer. If you remember the tune, I could put it down on music staff paper for you. I’d love to hear it!
I finally remembered the tune to which my mother taught us to sing Thank you for the world so sweet…. It is the Old Hundredth, known also as the docility.
One tune to which Thank you for the world so sweet…. can be sung is the Old Hundredth, known also as the Doxology.
This Divine little poem my mom taught me when I was little and I would recite it every time we would have company before we ate! I thought my mom learned it from her mom and so on! Imagine my surprise when I discovered this wasn’t true!
My 3 grandsons are to be Baptized soon. I bought “My Little Library ” of Prayers and Poems. As I was going through this delightful collection, I found the very poem I thought originated from my family. It was the poem, “Thankyou for the World so Swee t”, written by Edith Rutter Leatham!
How lovely to have a prayer passed down through the generations. Now you can teach it to your three grandsons! Thanks for reading and sharing this, Nunzie!
I learned that blessing in the early 1940’s. We had a different blessing for every day meals but on special occasions such as Christmas, Easter or when we had company we said ” Thank you GOD for the world so sweet” I thought my mom made it up. I’m 82 years old now so thanks for the correct info
So glad you found this post! I’m appreciating the “old” prayers more and more as I get older. Thanks for your encouraging comment. Blessings!
GOD is so good. I heard this song in my spirit today and began to look it up. I too learned it as a child but never knew the author. Thank you and have a blessed day.
So glad you found my blog! Thank you for reading and leaving a comment. Blessings!
I am a former JK/SK Kindergarten teacher and at snack time each day we said this praise/prayer aloud, not putting our hands together or closing our eyes because we were a ‘mixed bag’ of faiths, and I am thankful to say no complaints from the parents were brought to my attention. I now am 88 years of age, born in the North of England, but have lived in Canada for 67 years. Found this prayer as I was sorting stuff out in a Service Book given to all students by the County Borough of Blackpool so many, many years ago! Gratefully, Nina Hillier
How wonderful to read your comments! Thank you for sharing your experience with this little prayer. It reminded me again of how God loves to use small things (like 5 loaves and 2 fish!) to reach many people. Blessings on you as you reflect back on your years of teaching all those children. ❤️