What to Be Thankful For

It’s All About Everyone Else

Painting “Seance” by Charles Deihl, my father. Copyright Charles Deihl, all rights reserved.

Much of what I write about is difficult. I am deeply concerned with the health of our planet and the health of human society. There are days when I feel sad about what I see and know. We all have anxiety and we all need to take a break and breathe out. Thanksgiving is the holiday to do that, but first I would like to recognize Native Americans. This is not a holiday of thanks for them, but rather a reminder of all that was taken. Let’s hold them in our thoughts and grow from their wisdom that teaches reverence for the natural world and recognizes that animals have power and spirits just as we do and an equal right to life on earth.

My list won’t be perfect. Many of the things I take comfort in others can’t, because many are less fortunate. As we think of our personal good luck, let’s also pause to remember children who don’t have enough to eat, the homeless, and countless people in the world who suffer at the hands of cruelty.

With those things in mind I am most thankful for the people who love me. I am thankful to have parents who sacrificed and have my back to this day. I am thankful for them providing a foundation which gave me a chance to succeed. I am keenly aware of the gift they are.

I am thankful for people I have lost. The painting above by my father is about them. The ancestors I was fortunate to know. Their memory fills and informs who I am today.

I am thankful for the people who have forgiven me. I have done my share of selfish, stupid things and those who have stayed by my side are treasures I have tried to learn from. I owe them that. When someone forgives you, it’s an opportunity to feel humility and grow from the experience. Many people have granted me lenience in my life and I love them all, but have one amazing friend in particular who had every right to cast me aside. She knows who she is and I will never be able to thank her to my satisfaction.

I am thankful for my sister and brother-in-law, two of the most generous people anyone could be honored to know. They embody the ideal of helping others. A few years ago when I had a serious health crisis they were there for me. They make my world a better place.

I am thankful for my daughter and hope that time will make us closer and that I can help her realize her amazing talent and intelligence. It is hard to be young in this world right now. She is a beautiful person.

I am thankful for new opportunities. Life without opportunity is a tragedy. So many live without opportunity. It’s important to realize the difference between good luck and hard work. Many people work harder than you and I to merely survive. We owe something of ourselves to those people.

I am thankful for artists, writers and musicians. They are the recorders of history, thoughts for our future and the embodiment of being human. Without thinkers and creativity we wouldn’t have joy or hope. Our souls would be lost.

I am thankful for people who trust me to share their fears and problems. I have a friend with cancer. He reached out to me. It’s my job to support him, but whatever little I can do has already been returned by my inclusion. It’s a deep honor.

I am thankful for people of other cultures, especially those with the lilting island accents. Their way of being brings sunshine to my life even in the gray days of February in the Northeast.

I am thankful for bicycles and mountains and all the hours I have spent in nature. Those days fill me up. I am thankful for rocky trails, lakes and views from high. I am thankful for sweating, suffering and succeeding. I am thankful for moments when I live in the moment, because in reality the moment is all we have.

I am thankful for all the pets I ever had, the easy simplicity and love of those relationships. I am thankful for wild animal sightings on my hikes and rides. I am thankful for the memory of a chipmunk that ran my 60’ foot long rock wall all day long, his cheeks full to ensure his future through the winter, working hard as we all do. When he paused occasionally to stand with his eyes closed facing the sun, I knew what he felt and what I feel are the same when I let the sun gaze on my face, too.

I am thankful for the amazing luck to enjoy my short life on this wondrous planet. I realize if my parents hadn’t been feeling amorous on a particular night long ago, I wouldn’t exist. Imperfect as I am and you likely are too, that makes every one of us a miracle. Let’s live that way.

One planet, one fate. We need to love each other. That starts in each one of our hearts. Happy Thanksgiving.