So I’ve got the Thanksgiving column again, eh? Well, I’ve already gone to the well one too many times on the “what I’m thankful for” gambit, so I’m afraid you’re not going to hear any stories about my beautiful, two-year-old daughter this time around.
Okay, just one: her latest thing is to walk around the house, wobbling side to side and showing us how a penguin walks, all while repeating “waddle-waddle-waddle” like it’s some sort of meditation. But that’s all the feel-good you’re getting, got it?
I’m certainly not going to tell you about the latest addition to our household, an adorable black cat who showed up at our house on Halloween under mysterious circumstances. Turns out he’s not only neutered and litter-trained, but clean as a whistle and now up to date on his shots and medication. Oh, and did I mention he climbs right up in your lap for a hug at all hours of the day? Of course not, because I’m not writing one of those silly columns this year.
There’s no chance I’m going to tell you how thankful I am that my wife puts up with all of my ranting and raving. Imagine this column, but all day, every day. Now, if boxes of candy start showing up in the mail, I’ll know why. And don’t think I’m going to go all mushy and talk about how happy it makes me feel every morning when I wake up and she’s still there, because I never expected anyone to like me for this long, let alone love me and want to share a life with me. All that stuff’s for wimps, I tell you.
Or my best friend, who always seems to be having the same crisis I’m having, so we can combine our frustrations and find ways to make each other better people? Not even going to mention it.
And my family? Please: four other brothers and sisters, Mom, Dad, and nine pets all told. From Wisconsin to California and maybe soon even Massachusetts, all brought together by a simple phrase: We are Leitzens? It’d be ridiculous for me to talk about how I know no matter what happens, if I needed them to have my back, they’d be there, no matter what problems we might be having. That’s just a bunch of sentimental fluff.
And so we’ll sit down in our homes all over the place and dig in to turkey and mashed potatoes and maybe a few weird family traditions like Jell-o fluff, scalloped corn, and the cranberry sauce that always has to have can lines. I suggest you all do the same: take your uncle in his “Make America Great Again” hat and your nephew in his “Feel the Bern” t-shirt and make them hug you. Heck, make everyone hug everyone before they can even touch the green bean casserole. Remember what makes you similar, not different. We’ve spent too much time picking piddly little things to divide ourselves on while the real villains get richer and more powerful up at the top. For one moment this Thanksgiving, put the politics aside and remember what’s really important: we are what keeps America going.
We may disagree on this or that, but at the end of the day we all know what we want: a decent life for us and ours, and opportunity for others to get that decent life, too. We don’t like liars, we don’t like cheats, and we don’t suffer fools. Anyone who tries will find out what the fascists found out in World War II: America can bring the thunder if you wake them up and ally all the warring little parts into one big, angry, not-my-country-and-not-my-family juggernaut. It’s happened before, and it’ll happen again. Have faith and remember the simple things, because life is simple at the end of the day, and that’s something I know I’m thankful for.