Thanksgiving?

We can probably all agree that it’s been one hell of a weird year and for some, the word catastrophic wouldn’t be hyperbolic at all. It’s been one of the toughest years for just about every single person I know. 
I absolutely commiserate and have shouldered my own burdens this year...
But!
I am learning that dwelling on the past really doesn’t help me move forward. Not to dismiss the hardship and lessons learned throughout this craptastic year, but not to let the bitterness settle around my heart and soul. 
  It’s a fine line, most days. 
Today I wil choose to be thankful for the positives I have witnessed and also for some of the negatives in my life that (I hope) are slowly rectifying. 
  I’m thankful for my friends and family, of course.  This goes without saying but I really mean this. Having loved ones with me during the lockdown probably saved me from a terribly depressive summer... I don’t know for sure but I struggled mightily as it is and that was with support in my house. I am grateful for having good people in my life.
 I’m thankful that my Dad is in remission and is doing better as this year grinds along. I didn’t realize how much weight this was putting on me till he got the all clear. I feel like I can breathe again. 
  Reaching out and reconnecting with someone so near and dear to my soul that mere words won’t do it justice... that... well, that’s been the highlight of the year for me.  Looking forward to spending time with this special person has made this mess of a year so much easier for me. 
  My awful vision. Hahaha yep, I think most of you, my loyal readers, know how bad my eyes are.  I’m hoping there’s a fix in the near future, and no guarantees but I will settle for being thankful for an option where I had lost all sense of hope. 
 Being back at work! Hah, most people may not agree but work gives me drive and direction, purpose and routine (sort of), and a sense of well being. I know I shouldn’t tie my identity to my job, it’s just what pays the bills, but it’s nice to be working and contributing again. I was feeling like a drag on the household and just in general. 
I’m thankful that no one I know has gotten seriously ill from Covid to this point and most of my people are taking it seriously enough to wear their masks. We may not all agree on all the things, all the time, but protecting others and ourselves from germs by wearing an inconvenient mask, well... small price to pay. 
  I’m thankful I live in a country that is trying to protect its citizens, keep them fed and clothed and sane in this insane time.  They don’t get it right all the time but they are trying and it’s all new so there will be some fails. I’m fine with fuck ups but I’m always watching the effort. That’s what matters. That’s what I’m thankful for. 
  And for you, dear readers. Be safe and be well, be thankful for what we have where so many do not have. Keep fighting the good fight. 
  As a wise songwriter once wrote “Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight, gotta kick start the darkness till it bleeds daylight.”
  Now ain’t that the truth. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Spin the globe and see where you land

      Funny the difference a season can make.  My last post at the end of Spring had me gearing up for an epic European backpacking trip.  Rome, Naples, Procida Island, Bolzano, and various other stops in Italy before swinging up to Poland to visit with a friend there after staying with a gracious and patient friend in Italy.  Wroclaw was special to see for the historical side of things but more importantly to me, it was the birthplace of my dear friend Margaret.  Slawek, her brother, and I would travel the streets of their youth that they had told me all about over the course of decades... it brought Maggie back a little bit, for a short while.  A special end to a pretty special trip.  Definitely had some bittersweet moments as well but the glory of the Roman ruins, the awe inspiring mountains of the Dolomites, to the excitement of hiking up a winding hillside through dense brush and tree cover to behold the ruins of old castles, meticu...
Read more

Blogwork is Homework is Good Work

 Hello, Gentle Reader,    This blog has always been my way of sharpening my writing chops, or shaking off the rust of my laziness and trying to find my 'voice', as it were, online.  I know, Gentle Reader, that you often do not give feedback, and thats ok.  This space isn't meant as an ego-reach and any and all feedback regarding my posts is appreciated, often more than you might guess, but thats not why I write here.     Most of my drive and reasoning is the simple act of it.  Writing is healthy for the soul and great practice more than anything else, the more practice you put in, the better at it you get... or at least that's what I keep incessantly telling myself, forever hopeful that I am in fact getting 'better' as a writer, whatever that actually means.  I suppose my ability to project my voice comes down to you, Gentle Reader.  I hope you hear me and I am able to project the visuals and a sense of where I am, figuratively as w...
Read more

Fuck this place, I’m out…

I grew up poor.  Really poor. To steal a line from Chris Rock, we grew up so poor we couldn’t afford the O R at the end of the word, we were just PO. hahaha. Still accurate. But my childhood poverty isn’t the point of this post. I mention it because growing up I had to watch all my friends going on family vacations to Disneyland and the Phillipines and Mexico and wherever their families were in the world while I roamed my asphalt jungle like a half wild animal in a cage.   I always vowed that I would see the world someday. It was a fervent childhood promise full of idealism and hope, as only a child can conjure.   In my heartbreak of being left behind and alone to fend for myself all summer, I knew, in my bones…I just KNEW… I’d go out there and see the world some day. Even as those bitter tears streamed down my little cheeks, the fire to see the world, the one I only ever read about in books, burned deep in my soul.  … … … Fast forward a few decades.  I’ve ...
Read more