Thanksgiving

Most of the world hasn’t heard of Thanksgiving as a holiday and the origins and reasons thereof have been called into question. Nevertheless it is one of those celebrations that remain in the lives and hearts of anyone born in the USA or even those who have spent time there.

If I were to sit down and write a list of all the things that I am thankful for, I could easily spend the entire day. That the sun came up this morning and I am alive to see it is already major.

But there are two things without which all the material goods in the world or even health would have no meaning: family and friends.

They are what gives life its meaning – whether you are up or down, in good health or ill, poor or rich, without family and friends with whom to share, it would be a very sad and deprived life.

I have been overly blessed (well not really, I keep adding to the friends) to not only have friends from my youth, from my high school days, less from my university ones as I moved a lot, from my return to Switzerland, from after my husband’s death (now that is a weird feeling : to be good friends with persons who have not known your spouse), from recently and I have no doubts that there will be more in the future. I have a large family of cousins on both sides of my parent’s families, I have my sons.

I am blessed: I will be giving thanks as I sit at the table tonight with a portion of those family and friends.