disTraction #141 - Home For The Holidays?

The phrase has a whole new meaning this year. Yes, most of us will be celebrating the holidays at home. Although, according to a report, over 50 million Americans threw caution to the wind and flew elsewhere to joined loved ones for Thanksgiving. We can only wish them safe travels and good health.

Of course, good health is what we all want. As the writer Augusten Burroughs said, “When you have your health, you have everything. When you do not have your health, nothing else matters at all.” Health is something to be quite thankful for.

In fact, there are many things to be thankful for and many people to thank as we approach the year of living with COVID-19.

Thanks to all the doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, EMT’s, pharmacists and all medical personnel for being there for anyone who was sick. You’ve saved many, many lives and we thank you.

Thank you to all the people who went to work so the things we count on in life were still available to us as we all became isolationists.

Thanks to the people who stocked the shelves in grocery stores so that food would still be available. And thanks to the countless people who delivered products to the stores, distribution centers and to our homes.

Thanks to the butchers, bakers, fishmongers and cheesemongers, as well as the beer, wine and liquor merchants.

Thank you to police officers, fire fighters, waiters, doormen, as well as priests, chaplains, ministers, rabbis, imams and all religious people who helped to keep us filled with hope.

Thank you to all the people who religiously took our trash away (just imagine if they hadn’t).

Surprisingly, we all became amazingly appreciative of technology, an unexpected gift of the pandemic. Various platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams and RingCentral became the new glue that kept us together online instead of in person.

Thanks also to the extraordinary generosity of friends and neighbors who helped people in desperate financial and spiritual despair because of COVID.

When you think about it, even something as terrible as a pandemic has a silver lining.

There are many people to thank for helping us all keeping moving forward. Probably many more than were mentioned here.

And if it means that Santa will just have to Shelter in Place this year, at least we know the gifts will still arrive. Thanks to…well…you know who.