I’ve been blogging for more than five years now. Today seemed like a good day to repeat an article I ran on my first Thanksgiving …

Most of us labor in obscurity of one type or another. Let’s face it, that star-maker machinery has moved on its rattle-trap tracks right on past. (Thank God.) And as the sound of the calliope fades in the distance we realize we don’t really need the approbation of others to survive.

But sometimes … it’s just nice to have. 🙂

These are the sorts of things one thinks about when Thanksgiving draws nigh, eh? One counts one’s blessings. And I couldn’t be here, waxing sappily philosophic, without the precious time and considerable talents of Laura Raggi, who created my website out of whole cloth, made it work like a dream, seamlessly integrated a blog, and oh-so patiently held me by the hand (figuratively speaking: she’s in Roma and I … well, I’m not) as I learned to, you know, post to the thing. (I can write all day long; posting is another story. After all, I have trouble turning an iPod on. Or off.) I’m so lucky to know her.

I’m honored and astounded—nay, I am in the Van Morrison sense stoned—by my family and friends who cheer me on, daily, on Facebook and who also show up regularly on my actual doorstep to make sure I have a life.

“I’m writing this,” a character in Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead says, “in part to tell you that if you ever wonder what you’ve done in your life, and everyone does wonder sooner or later, you have been God’s grace to me, a miracle, something more than a miracle.” Something more than a miracle; this is exactly how I feel about the Boy.

The Irishman, simply, gives me reason to live. Every day. In ways large and small.

And I’m astonished, honestly, to have readers, any readers at all, card-carrying, registered friends and folks whose names I don’t yet know, who took the time to request notification every time I post. I have readers in Ireland and Italy and Australia (oi!) and Texas (which isn’t a country but might as well be). Thanks to Google Analytics I know I’ve had two visitors from Brazil who spent several minutes checking out all the pages on my website. Most of my visitors last month were from California (353 visits), it seems, but I’ve even had one from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Holy mackerel. For all of these, I am so grateful. It’s very humbling.

Happy Thanksgiving, y’all. I know it’s “just a day” in most of the world but here in America we plan a meal, take a day off to be with family and friends, and count our myriad blessings.

* Title phrase from “Wild Girl” by Rickie Lee Jones.

Tweet: It’s good to be grateful … year-round.
Tweet: It’s “just a day” in most of the world but here it’s food, family, & blessings.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”