Happy Thanksgiving!

Tonight I've been tempted to write about several things.  President Obama has delayed yet another part of the Affordable Care Act - the small business exchanges.  I'm betting he did this unilaterally as well - another un-Constitutional move by the President.  But I'm going to let that wait for now.

I also considered writing about the incredibly lame deal John Kerry and Obama made with Iran concerning their nuclear proliferation.  Even their President said basically that Obama is a fool and that they have no obligation to abide by the deal.  With Obama and Kerry in positions of power in this country - we're probably more screwed than we realize.  At least, more than some Americans realize.

Instead, I decided to write about Thanksgiving and what it means to me.  No - this won't be a 4th grade essay - at least I hope not.  I'm 56 years old and have celebrated a lot of Thanksgiving holidays in my lifetime.  So it should be a little more interesting than a 4th grade essay.

For me, Thanksgiving incorporates several things.  Certainly there is the history - the Pilgrims celebrating life in the new world and the blessings God gave them by not only helping them survive but making friends with the natives in the area. They certainly could have had it a lot worse. Jamestown, Virginia, comes to mind.

Secondly, Thanksgiving brings memories of my family as a child.  My parents had five children.  Dad was a Baptist minister and did not make a lot of money.  Think school teachers are underpaid?  Check out the salary of a preacher of a small church with five kids.  But we managed.  Mom worked part-time once we got older but not during the years we needed her at home.  We didn't have a lot of luxury items and usually only got new shoes once a year, at Christmas.  But we were happy.  We celebrated Thanksgiving every year by thanking God for the things we had, for the love of family and for our great nation.  And we had a big turkey dinner with all the fixin's to help celebrate it.

These days I still have things to be thankful for.  I have a wonderful wife - a woman I've known for 27 years who came back into my life unexpectedly and not only was available but interested.  How many people have that going for them?  I have a whole new family on her side that has added so much to my life.  And I still have my own family - my siblings, in-laws and nieces and nephews (in some cases Grand-nieces and nephews).

I still have ex-in-laws who love me and consider me part of their family.  Since my son and his mother are both gone now, I count myself very, very lucky to have that.  They are my only connections to my own departed family.  And I love them very much - not only for who they are but for keeping me a part of them.

I have some very dear friends out there who love me in spite of myself.  OK, I'm not that difficult to deal with but I'm grateful when someone decides I'm worth investing their time in.  I'm grateful when someone decides they'll care about me, with all my faults and flaws, and they'll be my friends(s).  Thanks to all of you for caring.

So Thanksgiving means a lot to me.  I'm thankful every day for all I have but it's nice to have a day, once a year, that makes me reflect on just how much that is.  I don't have an abundance of money but I consider myself a very rich man.  I have the love of a lot of people, not just family but others who have no obligation to put up with me but do so anyway.  I thank you all for that.

Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one of you.  For those of you who believe in God - may He bless you all with happiness and love in the coming year.  For those of you who don't believe in Him...  may He bless you as well and find a way to make you change your mind.  Thanks to all of you for reading my drivel. I hope it enriches your lives in some way each and every time.