Of all years in recent memory, thinking of things for which to be thankful is particularly difficult this year. The economy is tanking. People are losing their homes, their jobs, their savings, their sense of equanimity. There is much unrest and disquiet in the land. A lack of any sense of stability and security is creating a stressful situation in many homes.
Yet, give thanks we should (that sentence should be heard in the voice of Yoda). I do not say "must", because I do not believe "must" is a word God understands. We should be thankful for the blessings, little and big, that surround us even in the midst of our current turmoil and distress. For family and friends, neighbors far and near. We should be thankful that we are fortunate enough to live in a land with as many opportunities for recovering as we do. We are more than our economic and financial stability and well-being, and we are free, we just held an election that will drastically alter our country, and power will pass peacefully in January 20, 2009. We can praise Allah, offer incense to the goddess, recite the Psalms in Hebrew, or worship the god of many names and faces behind the many masks of Hinduism. We can even refuse to recognize any of it, call it all garbage and bunk and hokum, and yet be thankful. We are Americans, residents of a great land, and we believe that even though our prospects are bleak right now, our future is always brighter than our present, which means we will move on to greater things together. So give thanks, if nothing else, for living in this moment.
"We Gather Together"
"Now Thank We All Our God"
"Praise To The Lord, The Almighty"
