Maybe I'm confused, or delayed, or whatever, but the time of the year I spend the most time thinking about being thankful is this time of the year, rather than November.
We all wander around on this spinning globe, as it wanders around a star that's wandering through the universe. It can seem like a treadmill sometimes, though, where we aren't really going anywhere. And we can feel like we're just a speck, floating in nothingness. As a cop, I saw first hand how this time of year can create crisis and turmoil in those who feel isolated.
But you're not alone. In this world, it's almost impossible to be alone. You affect other people every single day. In happy circumstances, you affect them in positive ways. In many circumstances, you aren't aware you affected them at all.
Which brings it back to me. (It's always about me, of course) Thousands of you have affected me over the years. You wrote me notes about it. I'm thankful for that. Some of them were intended to be negative, but even those, I am thankful for, because even those made me think about things. And it's 'thinking about things' that produces the ideas I put on digital paper.
I started writing to fill my own needs, one of which was to feel creative. I shared that with the world at large on a whim. I felt like a kid, offering a crayon drawing to group of strangers to see if they thought it looked like what it was supposed to be or not.
The strangers (most of them) were kind to me. The strangers gave me advice. The strangers told me I wasn't alone, and thanked me for helping them feel like they weren't alone.
Even though we never met, there was a connection that affected us all.
Of course I hope I affect people in positive ways. But at this time of year, when the reason for the season is giving, I think a lot about how much other people have given me.
Thank you for that.
If you read me, you know I'm not one for being politically correct. But just this once, I'll try it.
Have a wonderful Rama-Hanna-Quans-mas and may the new year bring you prosperity and health.
Bob