Being thankful at a time there is little to be thankful about

Today is Thanksgiving and it has been a rough year. For those who don’t know I lost my job a few months ago, and I have been living on what is left of my retirement since then, as the job market is rough, and a disabled man whose only tradable skill is limited by his disability, well that makes things difficult.

Outside of that the world has gone to hell. Everything is more expensive than last year, my neighbors are getting kidnapped by ICE,  we have received more or less definitive proof that our leaders are all pedophiles and it seems very little will be done about that, and the institutions we all rely on are being gutted and dismantled as the vanity project of a man who has alienated every friend in his life. There is just not a lot to be Thankful about.

Thankfulness seems embarrassing to talk about, as the most embarrassing man on the Planet, our Vice President, is obsessed with people being thankful about the raw deals they’re being offered, as if getting to eat shit is an experience a person should obsequiously genuflect themselves  for the privilege. I do not advocate being Thankful when you don’t have what you should. We should never kneel to the masters as they demand our fucking gratitude for the scraps they throw us.

However, learning thankfulness for what you have that others don’t is the kind humility and hope building exercise vital to a transformative movement like leftists want to build. We should not be thankful for the scraps, but it is good praxis to be thankful for what we have, even as it is vital we fight for more.

What defines us against our enemies is our rejection of cynicism for the belief that the world can be better. It’s the insistence against the darkness that light is possible and that we can build it. For that in the darkest times thankfulness may act as a proxy for hope, as we build a better future for us and our own.

So I am Thankful. Not for the scraps that the owner class deigns I should have. I am thankful for my family, not just my children and their mother who is still my best friend, but my parents and extended family who keep their doors open for me. I am thankful for what I am able to do, not just as a cook, but as a writer and a bringer of ideas. I am thankful for the community that we are building here, and every comrade who has kind or mean things to say but nontheless wish to build a better world than me. I am thankful I was able to cushion my fall even though it may not be enough.

And I am thankful to you, dear reader. You may be few but I hope my words can reach you, inspire you to be the best that you are capable of. And while you may not have as much to be thankful about, or you may have more, I am thankful for the kindness of people who may help us all in these trying times. And I am thankful for the future that with work, and persistence, and community, we will build together.

Jack Shawhan, AKA The Terrier, is a writer and internet funny person with occasional observations on politics, media, and modern life. If you would like to support his continued writing consider subscribing to his Ghost or if you would like to buy him a coffee send to his CashApp $JackShawhan.