Being Thankful

One of the most powerful, transformative moments of my life occurred at the age of 14.

My father took me on a post-Bar Mitzvah trip to the birthplaces of his parents, in Lithuania and Poland.

The thing is, this was the mid 80s. We had to go behind the Iron Curtain into the Soviet Union and communist East bloc.

It was at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin at the end of our trip. I was sitting on the step of the museum, looking at the Cold War border.

I had seen oppression and tyranny up close and personal for 2 weeks and I realized that I wanted nothing of it. The feeling was the intense feeling of gratitude I had for having been born in the USA.

America, I realized, is far from perfect. The objective, after all, is to create a “more perfect union.”

However, it is SO much better than the alternatives. It pains me when people don’t appreciate it and/or take it for granted.

It’s why, no matter what, I feel that voting is a civic responsibility.

Millions, if not billions of people, would give their lives so their children could enjoy the freedoms that Americans (and many in the West) have.

So, even if you aren’t a citizen of the US today, I hope you’ll join us taking a moment to do an act of gratitude today that benefits others.

America, still, is far from perfect. It feels even farther these days.

Yet, there is much for which to be thankful.

I am going to focus on that today.

Happy Thanksgiving.

P.S. A bit of trivia. Recently, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Wall. There was an interesting article in the Wall St. Journal entitled “The Berlin Wall Fell 30 Years Ago. Where Did It Go?”

I can tell you one thing. There’s a small rock size piece of the Berlin Wall in my front yard. I received it as a gift during the time I lived in Germany in the mid 90s. I put it in the ground outside my house so I can look at it and remind myself of that moment.