A Lot To Be Thankful For On Thanksgiving 2024

 

Difficult first 4 years for the Pilgrims after a 2 month long voyage across dangerous seas
Blown off course from a  temperate Virginia to near Plymouth Rock to Endure freezing weather, strained relations with certain tribes, threats of starvation and deadly disease
But warmed and strengthened by their faith and the Wampanoag’s starvation ending farming aid
A failure to establish the colony and retreat by the few remaining survivors were able to evade
In America although nowhere near the difficulty the Pilgrims faced
The last 4 years have been hard with job losses and inflation seeking to savings erase
The economic snows of despair are melting fast and the light at the end of the tunnel shines
Today truly a time for Thanksgiving for the bounty of material goods
And the fact that the fears of recession and the beasts of inflation we have withstood
With our freedoms to worship as we see fit despite our divisiveness still intact
And when it comes to disasters our wallets and purses opened to those victims who all manner of security now lack
Sadly the world beset by wars and after election we are still a deeply divided nation
And the plague of ad hominem attacks on opposing views merits our condemnation
The struggles against the problems we face cannot be won
If we shed compromise and refuse to unite more like being one
But today we know it is hard to assail a neighbor with a mouth full of turkey
As the tranquil and calming effects of tryptophan we will soon see
Thanksgiving is a time not to pare the diners’ list
To invite only those whose same views as yours exist
A time to be thankful and full of gratitude with the ability during the Holidays to it try to share
Even on Black Friday when the cries of frustrated shoppers tend to fill the air
A time not to feel anger with your fellow Americans because they oppose what you believe
If it resides in you not lessened but enhanced, how will you on Friday be calm enough to find a parking space or a short checkout line to your shopping anxiety relieve? 

© 11/27/2024 Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet