What I Am Thankful For and Hopeful About

This was an unusual Thanksgiving week for me in many ways. It started with a pre-Thanksgiving trip to Atlanta to attend two conferences and visit with a dear cousin and his wife whom I haven’t seen for almost ten years. Thanksgiving Day was spent with neighborhood friends who invited us knowing we would not be spending the day as we usually do with our relatives. The day after Thanksgiving we spent visiting with relatives and their newlywed son and daughter-in-law. The week-long festivities gave me a lot of time to think about what I feel thankful for this year and hopeful about for the year to come.

I am thankful for my immediate family members whom I love for always “being there” for me…
…I am hopeful that each of them will experience a productive, mostly joyful and fulfilling year ahead.

I am thankful for being pronounced “cancer free” following a serious bout with cancer exactly two years ago…
…I am hopeful that my luck will continue and I will be able to enjoy my renewed health for a good while.

I am thankful for this blog site which I joined soon after my cancer recovery and which opened a door to a new passion…
…I am hopeful that I will be able to continue to interact with my fellow bloggers for another year.

I am thankful for the gift of writing I have newly come to embrace after years of doubting my writing ability…
…I am hopeful I will continue to grow as a writer and that I will continue to learn from the other writers on this site.

I am thankful for old friends who have continued to sustain me throughout my life and whom I love in return…
…I am hopeful I will be able to be there for them in their times of need and I look forward to making new friends in the years ahead.

I am thankful for all those who continue to feel that acceptance of diversity is necessary for our country to remain strong and united…
…I am hopeful that a project I am working on will lead to enabling a group of diverse students feel they, too, have a voice in our nation.

I am thankful for all those who continue to struggle for the health of our environment including my son and daughter-in-law who “stood up against the Dakota pipeline by sitting down” at last week’s demonstration in NYC…
…I am hopeful that their voices and those of others who care about the environment will be heard and honored.

I am thankful that I have had such a rich and fulfilling (although often very challenging) life…
…I am hopeful that in the years ahead I will have new adventures and many more reasons to celebrate life.

I am thankful this year’s election is over…
…I am hopeful we can all get on with our lives and continue to fight (passionately but peacefully) for what we believe in and feel we can still make a difference.

Thanks to all the Slicers who have made Tuesday such an important day in my life…
…I am hopeful I will be able to continue to Slice with you as long as we all share the passion to keep doing so.