A Truthful Thanksgiving

Soon we will sit down
'round a table, with family and or friends,
Laden with favorite foods
Bow our heads in thought or prayer
And say what we are thankful for


We will mention health
Or caring physicians
When we
Or someone we love
Is lacking in this regard


We will mention family
But what we'll
Really mean
Is the ones we can stand
Or that don't drive us nuts


We will mention jobs
Because we're thankful
For the money they put in our pocket
Not for the idiots and assholes
Who also work there


If, when we sit down
We are truly honest with ourselves
Some people might be shocked
To know what we are
Really thankful for


Face it
We're thankful we made it
Through another year
Without killing some asshole
Who truly is deserving


We are thankful
for mindless distractions
Like video games, books, and movies
That let us escape from hell
For just a short while


We are thankful for the alcohol
Or the drugs
Or the sex
That deadens the pain
Or makes life tolerable


I, personally, am thankful
That my husband and I
Are finding a way to work through divorce
As gently as possible
For us and our children


I am thankful for the friends
Who love and support me
Who challenge me to be
Everything that I can
Even when I don't know what or who that is


I am thankful for my children
Who amaze me every day
With their unique brilliance
The wonderful people they are now
And the people they are becoming


I am thankful for the words
That flow from somewhere inside
Helping me make sense of my world
And from friends near and far
Sharing themselves with us


I am thankful for art
Colors, objects, and images
Made, found, observed
Keeping the darkness at bay
Lighting my world, my soul


Mostly I am thankful
For those I love
Who for some reason
Unfathomable to me
Chose to love me in return