What I have to be thankful for

Ciao everyone.

First and foremost, happy Thanksgiving. I know it may seem kitschy or like a Hallmark Holiday, but out of all of those, Thanksgiving is my favorite. Why? No, not because you sit around and try to force obesity in a single day, nor try and send yourself into a diabetic coma while watching football, but rather because it actually means something.

To me, Thanksgiving represents a chance to really let people know how much they mean to you. Part of me is sad that it takes a specific day out of the year to remember to be thankful, but the other half of me really enjoys this concept. As a society, I feel like we put such a high price on pride that when someone does something you appreciate, as a society we just say "thanks" and don't really recognize what we're thanking them for. Expressing gratitude makes people on both sides uncomfortable sometimes. I know that if I were to be very, very grateful for something, I'd say thank you, but sometimes it's hard, since you don't want an awkward situation, if that makes any sense.

On Thanksgiving, you can say for once "to hell with what people think of expressing my gratitude! You mean something to me, and I am so glad for everything you do for me, everything you represent, and just thankful for your general existence." I know I was raised in a family that would cry at Thanksgiving quite often (you know who you are) and I never once felt uncomfortable seeing people brought to tears when realizing just how much in life we have to be thankful for.

There have been times in my life where I wasn't grateful for what I had in a manner I consider appropriate by my standards. It wasn't an entitlement by any means, but more of a reluctance to really let people know how much I appreciate them.

I've grown a lot since then I think, and I've received a lot of lessons from family and friends. It's part of growing up, to realize just how lucky you are to have what you have. I live a charmed life. Sure, times can be difficult, work can be stressful, I can have difficulties just in the day to day existence that may drive me up a wall, but I have a great life. Not even pretty great, just great. I have have a loving, supporting family who would do anything to see me happy. They send me election magazines from across the ocean, knowing that I'd want to see the result in America with my own eyes and to keep as a memory of this watershed moment in history. How many people can honestly say that?

I have great friends who I can have any number of experiences with, from discussing the merits of the Catholic faith and defining love to appreciating a good fart joke. How many people can say that?

I have a girlfriend who, through thick and thin, I have learned so much with and appreciated a whole other side to life. We've seen the world, from San Diego to Istanbul, Lake Oswego to Interlaken, and Claremont to Cairo. We've appreciated foods from Mexican (i.e. El Ranchito and Roberto's) to Turkish, Music from Islamic to the Killers, and the comforts of seeing someone you love from overseas. How many people can say that?

I live in Rome, Italy and have had a chance to visit Africa, Europe, and Asia. I've seen the Pyramids of Giza and the Hagia Sophia, the Hofbrauhaus, the Jungfrau and Eiger, and the Parthenon. How many people can say that?

And to top it all off, how many people can say all of those things as a whole?

Not many.

I know how blessed I am, and to all of you out there reading this, I am thankful for you. Sharing this experiences makes me remember that I am so blessed to have this opportunity, and I can't wait to see you all again and share anew how wonderful and amazing life is to lead.

I heard this really great quote the other day from Brendan Foster, an 11 year old who recently died of leukemia, but who's dying wish was to feed the homeless. In his death he accomplished this in cities around the country, and all while having less than a week left to live. When asked what the greatest part about life was, he answered simply the following:

Having one.

No doubt about it, I am blessed beyond expression. I not only have a life to live and health to accompany it, but a wonderful family, awesome friends, and a fantastic girlfriend. Not a day goes by I'm not thankful for it all, and today is just a day to set some time aside and express it.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, enjoy some fantastic food, great company, and share your thanks with those you care about. Our time here is limited, and letting the people we love know they're loved is one way of reminding yourself just how lucky you really are.

Until next time,

Ciao.