I'm Glad the Turkey Isn't Me

Here we are on Turkey Day. A great day for reflection and gratitude. Couple of good football games on the tube. Nice way to get the family together.

But its more than that.

We as Americans need to really remember why this day came about. We relied on the benevolence of the natives for survival, and shared the bounty of what we learned with then once we became stablized. Neighbors helped neighbors without thinking twice. That's where we need to be today.

There are few differences between you and your neighbors and even the folks who live across town on the other side of the tracks. We all have the same basic needs and goals. The problem is our small clans create narrow views of how those goals are best accomplished. Some have the notion that it takes work and dedication. Others feel you get what you can take, and may the best scam win.

It's human nature to want something for nothing. Even the hardest working families with the strongest sets of ethics and values loves to take a bigger bite of the apple. But when you make it your purpose in life to find the short route, you end up taking more risks and wasting more time and energy if you actually made it the right way.

Lotteries are the best example. I hear so many of my coworkers talking about their "numbers" and whose hit and when. It's like a very expensive hobby that becomes a part of their lives. Frieghtening. They honestly believe the lie that their day could be tomorrow, when instead if they saved their ticket money they would actually have something. Yes there are those who win them, but the statistics show that lotto winners often commit suicide or go bankrupt within 3 to 5 years of a win.

My solution is simple. Let's get together and be thankful for the ability to work, earn, and share. We can't rely on the government. We can't rely on the numbers lining up. What we can rely on is making a difference first within, then to those close by, then reaching outside your neighborhood. We are the ones ultimately responsible for our success and our failures. We can rise above and reinvent our nation if we focus on what's real and openly encourage others to pick up the rope.

That's what I'm thankful for most. I'm thankful that I've grown enough courage and guts to sieze the day and shape it with my will and wit. My wish is for everyone I touch to do the same.

I for one will not be the turkey, but I will be doing the carving.

Chip Grefski