Thankfulness

[bkdelong]

There's a lot of talk these days about thankfulness for obvious reasons. It's a great shame that the whole purpose for our holiday centers around being thankful for something we turned around and jammed into someone like a knife.

The first Thanksgiving was the result, (abridged version), of the Native Americans saving a group of Pilgrim colonists who were on the brink of starvation due to a famine. They were taught to farm and hunt the land and whilst stocking up as a result of their newfound skills they decided to give thanks to their God for their bounty.

Then, (long story short), we took their land and wiped them out.

But, I think if anything that's a lesson learned. There is a reason for the holiday beyond thanking our chosen deityfor the bounties of the past year. I think it's a time to reflect on that which has befallen us and be thankful for that which has both benefited and been estowed upon us.

I'm thankful for such a wonderful, supportive, truely beautiful and loving wife to whom I need to offer more reciprocity.

I'm thankful for having such a sweet, healthy, intelligent, good son who continues to surprise and amaze me hourly.

I'm thankful and eternally grateful for my mother-in-law who spends several days watching after my son and instills him with manners & politeness, happiness, and a joy for life, through her love for him.

I'm thankful for my father-in-law - one of the most tireless hard workers I know and he has the graciousness to be on his own after very long days while his wife is gone during the week.

I am thankful for my mother showing me, despite being my senior, that learning should be a lifelong joy and trying new things can be fextremely fulfilling.

I'm thankful that my brother Jon is back safely from Iraq for an indeterminate amount of time and I honor his service and support for our country and its peoples.

I am thankful for my "younger" brother Nate's role as my life counselor, emotional guide and fellow technological futurist.

I'm thankful to be employed, to have a job with amazing coworkers who challenge me and keep me incredibly busy everyday, to be able to contribute to and help support my family, while doing something I enjoy.

I'm thankful for my friends who constantly and consistently make an effort to engage my oft grumpy, curmudgeonly, hermitistic self to check-in on me, ask me what I've been doing and unconditionally make themselves available regardless of my infrequent contact and lack of return fealty.

I'm thankful for those in the world who seek all that is good, believe in karma and seek to right the balance of that which is light from that which is dark. Those who see the darkness in people and work to help them keep it in check and immediately notice those stricken with deep sadness and unconditionally aim to do all they can to restore the balance to happiness.

I'm thankful for peoples of all religions and dogmas that seek to follow the path of true goodness in their practices and see many of the negative and oft exclusionary artifacts as merely a difference in interpretations.

I know deep down I'm continually thankful for countless other reasons and people but in my state of triptophanic soporificness I can't bring them to mind at the moment.

Selfishly, I'm thankful for my health despite the state & treatment of my body and that I was finally able to quantify one of my long-time skills of intuitive orthogonal researching as it has allowed me to better know myself and be proud of what was once seen a lack of focus, concentration and specialization.

I am thankful for our rememberance of Thanksgiving and all that it reminds us.

Comments

[calygrey.livejournal.com]

The first Thanksgiving was the result

"Desperate Crossing" had some other suggestions for the First Thanksgiving, rather interesting show.

wiped them out

It's tough to argue with smallpox. I'd argue the "we" point, I'm 47, this stuff happened nearly 400 years ago. Not to mention the only ancestors of mine in this country longer than a hundred years were Maine natives.

[bkdelong.livejournal.com]

Heh. Like I said, it was a gross generalization as I didn't have the energy to go into the detailed history. But I'm referring to taking the land, developing it and pushing them further and further West. or North or South depending on where you look. The subsequent small pox, (couldn't necessarily be helped however it was consciously used as a biological weapon in the Siege of Fort Pitt).

Many of the Native Americans who are left, (besides those who smartly too advantage ofthe economical windfall of Casinos), are ravaged by depression, poverty, and alcoholism.

Again, many generalizations but I've found that if I go back to my old wikipediaesque ways of citing every source and verifying every fact I'd never get out what I'm musing about....

[harpinred.livejournal.com]

Triptophanic soporificness....LOLOL!

I'm glad that you had a nice Thanksgiving.

[mmknotts.livejournal.com]

Well let me say I am thankful for your father(Edwin Delong), even though he is not my biological dad.He is still a great father in law and a great friend.He is very caring and a great spiritual leader.I am also thankful for my mother in law,She is a great mom and friend.She is always there to listen and help in anyway that she can.Both of my in-laws are great people,and despite both working and taking care of grandma they find time to talk and advise both daughters. For these reasons I am Thankful.