A Day To Appreciate Life And Loved Ones

One of my very favorite Thanksgiving traditions is to head to the news stand after lunch and pick up an Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Each year the legendary columnist Furman Bisher writes about what he's thankful for and reflects on life in general.

It always gets me thinking about what I'm thankful for and makes me realize how much I truly have been given. I thought this year I would share his column with you. As you read it think about all you've been given and how blessed you are this year. Happy Thanksgiving!

By Furman Bisher
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Thanksgiving is a day that needs no elaboration. The very name says it all. It didn’t become a holiday by appointment, it evolved out of appreciation for life itself, for health, for a bountiful table, for love of family, for gathering together, a day to pause, give prayerful thanks and consider our good fortune.

But on the other hand, consider the plight of the turkey. The bird du jour. How was it that this awkward-looking fowl became our symbol of this festive holiday?

We have the Pilgrims to thank for that, we are told, and the reason was that turkeys were plentiful and dumb. Virginia Tech was the only college that ever named its teams for the turkey — the Gobblers — but soon got the drift and converted to Hokies, whatever a Hokie is.

Then, there is the negative side of “turkey,” the guy who’s an athletic klutz.

But enough of this. Let us clasp hands across the table and be thankful for what we have, not what we haven’t, and how blessed we are, not fearing to include a giggle or two:

I’m thankful for my trusty old pickup.

I’m thankful when no young person rises and offers me a seat on the Airport Tram, (you know, where the sign reads: “Reserved for the elderly.”)

I’m thankful when my neighbor offers me a load of firewood.

And, I’m thankful when the fireplace season comes around.

I’d be thankful if Jimmy Carter had been the kind of president he tries to tell George Bush to be.

I’m thankful for cellphones — for others, but keep it down, please.

I’m thankful when I’m making a reservation that I’m talking to somebody in Cincinnati, not India.

I’m thankful for the leathery smell of a new car — especially if it’s paid for.

I’m thankful when the postman leaves those envelopes with the little window in them.

I’m thankful never to get involved with some parent trying to discipline his child.

I’m thankful when the phone rings and it’s not a telepest.

I’m thankful I didn’t grow up in a country where curling is the national pastime.

I’m thankful for the bicycle I got last Christmas, but I fear it was a few years too late.

I’m thankful for smoked turkey, sorry it doesn’t taste as good as it smells.

I’m thankful I still keep a pencil trimmer, a glue pot and a typewriter at hand, in case of emergency.

I’m thankful for cashews (please tell me they’re not fattening).

I’m thankful I got a million miles in at Delta before we had to start undressing at the gate.

I’m thankful when the chiropractor says, “That’s all,” and the hurting stops.

I’m thankful for dear departed friends, of whom there have been too many this year.

I’m thankful for something I can only explain by saying I think I’m the luckiest husband alive.

And having said all that, let’s gather around, bow our heads and give grateful thanks to all our military folk who’ve served us any and everywhere.

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