Be Thankful Anyway


There's always reason to be thankful

By Kelvin Wade | | November 27, 2008 18:10

Something is not quite right this Thanksgiving. I mean, I'm all set to rendezvous with the guest of honor on Thursday with her golden brown skin, plump breasts, succulent thighs and alluring scent. Just imagining her laying there all smoking hot on that platter makes me all ready to masticate.

I'm ready for the parade of side dishes, eager to surround that bird on my plate. I'm all set for thick, steaming slices of moist turkey breast resting on a bed of fluffy seasoned stuffing with a river of hot turkey gravy cascading down your plate accompanied by thick slices of jellied cranberry sauce. What is turkey without its supporting cast?

I'm practiced and ready to wield my fork like Anakin Skywalker putting a lightsaber through its paces.

When we say grace the final 'Amen' will be the equivalent of a starter pistol signaling the start of the autumnal feast.

And (I hope my nutritionist isn't reading this) I'm even all set for some homemade sweet potato pie. All I need is just one thick, creamy piece to cap off the Super Bowl of consumption.

We've got the food. Check. Family and friends around the table. Check. Football on the TV. Check.

Still, like Keith Sweat said, something, something just ain't right.

I've got it. It's the Thanksgiving part. It's the giving thanks part. Never have I seen a more grim Thanksgiving.

When you turn on the news or pick up a paper you hear about the volatility in the stock market, a worldwide recession, automakers on the verge of collapse, home prices plummeting, foreclosures, layoffs, poor corporate earnings, consumer confidence in the toilet, the highest credit card debt ever, more people behind on their car payments, businesses closing their doors, charities in dire need and on and on.

What's next? Puppies suddenly start exploding? Babies losing the ability to laugh? Rainbows losing their color? Flowers losing their scent?

But there are good things, silver linings if you will, to be thankful for if we only look. A great American philosopher from Chippewa Falls, Wisc., Jack Dawson once said, 'I figure life's a gift and I don't intend on wasting it. You don't know what hand you're gonna get dealt next. You learn to take life as it comes at you . . . to make each day count.'

So even in these hard times, there are things we can be thankful for. We've got a new popular president-elect who is putting together a team that has bipartisan support. Hope and help are on the way.

Gas is under $2 a gallon. Who would've thought?

The spirit of giving, whether it's the Matt Garcia Youth Center, Mission Solano's efforts to feed residents this holiday or a number of other charities, is alive in Fairfield.

A year ago my girlfriend's granddaughter Lauryn blasphemed saying she 'hated reading.' But thanks to her interest in Stephenie Meyer's 'Twilight' series, she's raised her reading level two grades and made the honor roll.

Times are hard. But if we just look around, especially to our most valuable assets: our family and friends, we'll see that we have a lot to be thankful for.

Now I'm ready to assault that turkey. Peace.

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Read the latest on the Dollar Tree scandal here.

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