Another year of Thanksgiving

Four years ago this month, we set out on our fourth cross-country road trip in about a year and a half. We were on the road on the Thanksgiving holiday and had a turkey dinner at the Cracker Barrel restaurant near Pensacola, Florida. Lots of things were up in the air. We had just moved into a “new” house. I was starting a new law practice. We were recovering from the whirlwind of moving to Florida and then moving back to California.

My youngest son, Benjamin, was born on Thanksgiving day, 2002. He celebrated his birthday that year on the road. Today is his birthday. He’s nine years old. We celebrated as a family with bowling and lunch at Red Robin where Ben loves the mac and cheese. Last Sunday we had an early Thanksgiving at my Dad’s house as we celebrated his 81st birthday.

This is the time of year in Southern California when snowbirds come to Palm Springs and we remember why we live here. Moderate weather and clear skies in November are something to be thankful for.

I would like to develop an attitude of Thanksgiving that I can carry with me every day. I don’t mean I want to eat left-over turkey and cranberry sandwiches every day. I want to learn to be grateful for the daily blessings that come our way, the things that money can’t buy, love for my family and love for my God. In some ways this “learning” hasn’t been that easy this year. But each day brings a new lesson.

With feel-good gurus urging us to find the secret and live in the moment, I want to learn to get rid of anxiety through an attitude of prayerfulness and thanksgiving. It seems like I am making this one of my New Year’s resolutions. I frequently remind my clients that they can survive their financial and other legal troubles.

Give To KidCare

My friend, Larry Kapchinsky, runs a great relief organization, KidCare International. From one of his newsletters: “For many families, celebrating the holidays… will be an extraordinary challenge…Locally, (in San Bernardino and Riverside County, California) many poor children depend on KidCare International’s educational enrichment, food, shelter, and clothing, but there are thousands of children in South Africa, Haiti, Tanzania, Russia, and Sri Lanka that would have little or no hope without the help of humanitarian agencies like KidCare International. Thousands of children die each year in these countries from a lack of the most basic human needs—food, shelter, clean water and sanitation.” If you are looking for a worthy non-profit for a year-end charitable gift, I highly recommend KidCare.