Thanksgiving 2006
For those of us in the U.S., today is Thanksgiving, our version of the harvest festival that is traditional worldwide. Thanksgiving has become more than a thanks for a bountiful harvest that will allow us to survive the winter into a new spring when food begins to grow again. It is a symbolical day to give thanks for all that we have received during the past year. In Giving Gratitude I talked about how an attitude of gratitude can improve our lives, and in My Thanks I talked about some of the things I am thankful for this year.
Today I just want to say thank you to all of you. You have come to read and comment on the things at this site. You have given your time and your thoughts, your encouragement and food for my thoughts. No one could ask for anything better.
I've been online for 20 years - bbses, AOL, Cumpuserve, the internet. In that time I've come to the conclusion that the internet is the greatest invention in communication media since the printing press, and blogging has continued the revolution. Publication is no longer dependent on deep pocketbooks or the leaders of a field deciding what will be published, and what will not. This has its bad points, as anyone who spends much time online knows there is a lot that is not spending time with out there. Some people put this site in that category. But that's okay. No one forces us to go to, or not go to, any site available. Some governments, fearing free speech, abuse their populations. Some companies, fearing loss of revenue, abuse their customers. But overall, the internet has opened up our eyes to new ways of thinking, new ways of doing things, and new ways to form relationships with people we would never have been able to meet without it. For that I am thankful.
So, whether you are in the US and this is your official Thanksgiving day, or in another part of the world, Happy Thanksgiving!
Yeah, Rick, I think we're all thankful to have each other.
Carolyn
Do you think I'm being Mr. Obvious, Carolyn?
No. Why do you ask? Did I miss something?
I was just asking, in what I hoped was a humorous way, if you thought I was saying something most of us who blog feel, and so didn't really need to say it. You weren't saying that.
With all its good, written communication still lacks the body language and intonations of face-to-face communication. For me, that's usually a good thing. Sometimes, like now, it isn't. It's easier for me to write a post than to talk in comments. With a post, I'm usually writing in general. With comments, I'm talking to a real person. There's world of difference.
You're one of the reasons I like it here. You make me think.
Rick,
You are one of the reasons this year has been a stand out favorite, turnaround year for me. I can't enough how grateful I am for you.
Rick,
At this point in history, nothing good can be said too often.
The intonations of the written word is a mini-project for all of us who write and particularly so for bloggers.
In light of that, instead of saying, "Yeah, Rick, I think were all thankful to have each other", it might have been better as . . . (see next comment)
Rick, it seems bloggers have been blessed and charged with the grassroots level of bringing some peace and understanding into the world. The course is wide and easy to stay. In being part of this historic movement, we each have reason to give thanks. I stand with you in honoring those who write, those who read, those who are curious and open to examine and accept our message.
Carolyn
Carolyn: :-)
Liz: The feeling is mutual. I asked Lady Glynis once how I got so lucky to be with her. She said she dreamed me. We're each of us still dreaming our worlds. Isn't it great that our worlds dream back at us?
Rick,
I was traveling last week and am just now catching up.
Wow - love this post. I loved the Internet from the beginning and all the opportunities it brings. Those feelings resurfaced this year when I took up blogging. I think it's the greatest. Very powerful. People don't yet realize...
Sandra
Hi Sandra,
From your blog it sounds like you had a good trip.
A lot of people don't realize. Many others do. In 20 years the net will be seen as essential as electricity, the telephone, or paper books.