Surprisingly, I did not eat too much

This is the first Thanksgiving I have not celebrated with my Mom and Dad and my brother and his family. My wife made an amazing meal. We had turkey and ham, corn, Hawaiian dressing, and mashed potatoes. We had pumpkin and apple pie. It was wonderful.

An attempted video call with everyone was a comedy of errors and bad internet connections. We certainly tried.

At the end of the evening, I started getting depressed. The pandemic has not affected me personally as much as so many others. I have a good job, and my company is doing well. I get to go downstairs to my basement office and do my work in practically the same way as before. My wife changed jobs to a much more challenging one. My stepdaughters are coping as best they can, and my daughter across the state has found good friends, and I’m grateful. I still got depressed because, finally, the pandemic affected me personally. How selfish of me, I realized. How short-sighted. I needed to count my blessings.

As for blessing counting, I’m grateful I have a safe place to call my home, plenty of food, and a family who loves me. It’s easy to overlook how lucky I am. I am eternally thankful for the patience my friends and family possess when dealing with me, and I hope I can bring that same selflessness to them.

I hope your Thanksgiving was as wonderful as mine, and I hope next year we see a glimmer of hope.