Helping Food Banks Get to the Meat of the Matter for Thanksgiving

The state of the world has me thinking about what I am grateful for. I’m a little like “Dorothy Gale” in The Wizard of Oz—No matter who seems to want to make my life miserable or wishes the worst for me, I’m always lifted out of harm’s way. It’s just like the "Wicked Witch" says “someone’s always helping that girl!” The Universe is clearly on my side. Can I please get a “he bettuh go ‘head!”?

My dear friend Connie in Bellingham, Washington shared an experience with me that emphasized the importance of giving to others this Thanksgiving and throughout the holidays. After realizing that she wouldn’t be having Thanksgiving dinner at her house, she decided to donate her frozen turkey to one of the food banks in town. Upon delivering the turkey to the charity, which had a line around the corner, she was told that there was a turkey shortage this year. It seems that in the past, the bulk of turkeys have come from donations made by local car dealerships. This year,however,the dealerships were just unable to help out. So, it looks like Connie’s bird will be the only one on the wire today. She told them to make sure that a family with many kids received the turkey.

Apparently this scene is being played out all over the United States, where food banks are short of resources as they try to serve 30% more people in need this year. If you have an extra turkey or food you can donate to your local food bank, please do. Also, be sure to take some quiet time to verbalize what you are grateful for this year. That’s the way that we all are “set to receive more.”

Though my family is 3,000 miles away, and I am spending Thanksgiving alone this year with some Chinese food and a Bollywood film, I'm still grateful for a lot. Here’s my list (Mostly in this order!):

My family
My lovely boyfriend
My best friends (you know who you are)
My health
My job
Art--Ability to buy it and make it
A new presidential administration
Beautiful people—both inside and out
The lady at Macy’s who gave me a price adjustment on cashmere on the 11th day
True creativity
The dollar store
Bubble Tea
Pisco sours
Locally owned coffee shops
Premium denim from sample sales
Macy’s shoe sale rack