Some things are worth repeating

Yes, here we are again at my absolute favorite holiday. Yes, it is about the food, too, regardless of what I might have said elsewhere, but it's also about family, and whether we like it or not, whether we realize it or not, whether we've managed to deal with it successfully or not, family is something we should invest more time in.

This year, Thanksgiving is a bit more special than usual. Not only have we moved and have more family closer, we're getting more visitors than usual this year -- extended family in the best sense of the word: "adopted" children and extended-family in-laws. Oh, I can hear the hair rising on the back of some necks, but I wouldn't have it any other way. No, our extended family get-togethers are not nearly as interesting or exciting as the Griswolds (cf. "Christmas Vacation"), but they are every bit as intense, and that's a good thing.

Thanksgiving is one of the two times each year (Christmas is the other) when I don't mind getting up earlier than usual (usually about 5:00 am). It's one of those rare times in the year when I get to spend the following seven hours (at a minimum) in the kitchen, and not alone: everyone in the family, or whoever else is there, stops by at least once, and most folks more than once. Most importantly, though, it is a day in which practically every conversation, every exchange of observations, every sarcastic and insightful quip has to do with how good we have it. Yes, I am eternally thankful -- and I believe all others as well -- for absolutely everything that we have and what we are blessed enough to enjoy. I will admit that we live in decadent abundance. Life has been good to us. We are fortunate. We have more than enough so that we can share with others. Our adversity has kept itself within limits. Our calamities are more like inconveniences. Our disasters are, by comparison to others', distractions. And it is not only today that I give thanks for all I/we have, but it is today that most of us have the time to stop and think about it.

I would be remiss if I did not note at the same time, however, that there are too many people in America (only because this is the big holiday there) who have not been as fortunate as I have, who have not been blessed as we have, who don't share in the abundance that we too often take for granted. All of these people -- without exception -- don't deserve that fate.

I don't care which politics you think are right, and I don't care whether you consider yourself religious or not. The fact remains that if the joy of the day is not tinged with the sadness, is not made the least bit bitter by the fact that an increasing number of people -- not just in the USA, but worldwide -- are having difficulty finding reasons to be thankful, then you haven't truly understood what it is you have.

As one of my heroes, Bucky Fuller, pointed out: there's more than enough for everyone on this planet; and as another of my heroes, a humble Nazarene carpenter brought home: if you're not ensuring that the least of us have enough; you're missing the whole point ... of everything.

Today's the day. Wake up. Get real. Get the point. The real point of giving thanks is in the giving. You've got more, so give more. It is really that simple.

Giving thanks

This is a pretty special time for Americans. In a couple of days, it will be Thanksgiving, for many Americans the closest thing they'll have to vacation (a four-day weekend), for others, the day before Black Friday when they can go out and commit legal acts of violence to get the best deals on their Christmas shopping. It's when deer season begins in a lot of places, so you can go out and kill something. It's time to buy that much-needed symbol of a good Christian Christmas, the tree, though Christmas itself is almost a month away and will last twelve nights longer than that tree will. It's a time when we are supposed to give thanks, but when so many families can't get over their petty differences to even spend time or have a meal with one another. It's a time when far too many Americans won't really be able to afford a decent meal or a place to eat it in. It's a time when most Americans I know, who are pretty much out of touch with reality anyway, will wonder why things just can't be normal like they used to be when Norman Rockwell was their hero.

How do I know this? I see it in their actions. The really well-to-do are never heard from. They simply live their lives beyond the pale of down-and-dirty everyday life. They are the most silent, obscure, unknown group of citizens on the planet. Then there are all those who are going to have to work even though it's a holiday because their corporate overlords have deemed it unnecessary to have a holiday when there's money to be made and hordes of consumers who are willing to spend what little money they (don't) have. Then there are all those still downtrodden: the immigrants (too many illegal, of course), the massive number of unemployed (not counting people who are no longer looking for work doesn't make them not unemployed) who don't have enough to make ends meet when it's not a holiday. After all, it's their own damn fault that they have no marketable skills and are too lazy to get a job anyhow. Then there are all those tried and true, born-again-or-close-to-it Christians who wouldn't invite a homeless family in for dinner any more than they'd sacrifice their own time to go down to the local soup kitchen to maybe make even a little difference (unless you're a disgusting individual like Paul Ryan and need a photo-op). And then, there are my personal favorites, the majority of those who still think they're middle class and who deserve the holiday and who don't take kindly to people like me pointing out what hypocrites they really are.

Yes, the people I'm talking about are those who believe they deserve to have what they have to be thankful for: their "homes", their "jobs", their luxuries, their American citizenship ... all the results of their own devotion, dedication, and hard work.

How does 5% of the world's population believe it is entitled to 25% of the world's resources? Since when is a big mortgage a sign of worth? Why does one nation feel it is empowered to impose its will on others? What gives the most wasteful people on the planet the right to destroy the environment in the name of economic gain?

I really don't know. But there is one thing I do know: for those Americans who are celebrating Thanksgiving, why not give thanks for what really counts, that you were lucky enough to have been born where you are and not to have to be the victims of American thankfulness.