THANKSGIVING
This will be a short column while I prepare for the short work-week ahead. At this time of year, we in America think about thanks, thanks for what he have, the opportunities we enjoy, the hopes we carry. But the instinct to be thankful is not confined to America, it should be universal. Without recognizing the importance of being alive, in whatever condition, we can't hope for happiness, we can't avoid constant self-questioning and unhappiness. We all have things to be thankful for, starting with being alive, and this week I want simply to list a few of the things I'm thankful for in particular.
First, and most important, I'm thankful for those friends and colleagues who help me keep going every day. Without their cheerful assistance and encouragement, life would be more difficult and demanding and perhaps impossible.
Second, I want to thank all of the wonderful service people I encounter at shops, restaurants, public offices and elsewhere, the ones who work hard to sell and deliver the best product possible, who are proud of their work and who maintain an unflagging, cheerful desire to make me feel welcome. I've learned to see all of these people as friends and they have reciprocated, allowing me to join in their personal and family occasions. It's very important to me.
I'm thankful that I live in relative peace and prosperity, in a place where beauty is available every day, beautiful music, beautiful art, beautiful books, beautiful scenes of nature. I'm thankful to have all my senses so I can enjoy these beautiful things.
Finally, I'm thankful that I still hope for better things for everyone, including myself, at an age when many I know have lost hope, have assumed that things will only get worse. I don't fully understand how people live without hope and I'm glad I don't have to face life without hope.
11-19-01
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