]It’s Thanksgiving already? I haven’t even made my list of things to be thankful for! If you’re going to do it right, you have to take the time to sift through all of the “blessings” you take for granted to
]It’s Thanksgiving already? I haven’t even made my list of things to be thankful for! If you’re going to do it right, you have to take the time to sift through all of the “blessings” you take for granted to find the ones that are just a little bit more special.
I figured out long ago that most of the things I’m grateful for are all wrapped up with living on Kaua’i. In fact, I could make this island the only item on my list and end this column right here, but then I’d have all these leftover Thanksgiving thoughts with nowhere else to put them.
Having lived on Kaua’i nearly all my life, I’m most thankful that I’m surrounded by just about everything that matters most to me: family, friends and community. I’m happy to have a job I enjoy … most of the time … one that’s given me the pleasure of working with, meeting and making friends with countless fascinating people.
At this time of gratifying thoughts, I realize anew that many of the people I’ve admired the most over the years have never been featured in a front page story although they would have made great subjects. They’re the ones who don’t care about the glory or worry about getting the credit, they just roll up their sleeves and do the work, whether it’s for their boss or their neighbor or their community.
You can find them everywhere, helping youngsters learning to become better citizens through sports or scouting, working with youth in church-oriented programs that give them a solid spiritual foundation, donating their time to help Kaua’i’s special youngsters gain the satisfaction of achieving their personal best in an Olympian effort.
These are the people who buy turkeys to make Thanksgiving a bit more special for less-fortunate families, who send in and faithfully distribute Christmas Fund donations that help fill the often woefully simple wishes of our needy neighbors, or spend hours gathering and handing out toys that may be the only ones tots wake up to on Christmas morning.
They’re the ones who flip the pancakes or bake the desserts or wash the cars that fund the service projects their organizations sponsor throughout the year.
They’re the ones who find time in their busy schedules to volunteer on nonprofit boards and committees, working on the never-ending task of raising enough funds so these agencies can carry out the mission of helping those who need it.
They are those specific people who work in public service, not for the pay, but because they genuinely feel it is the most effective way to make a difference and help others.
They are the government staffers who steadfastly carry on the work as department heads come and go with the political tides.
They are the people who champion the causes the rest of us silently support in stand-by mode; those who are willing to voice their opinion in letters to the editor or by testimony at public hearings because they believe it’s what’s best for the island and its people.
And I’m so thankful you can find them all on this tiny island in the middle of the Pacific.
I’m thankful, too, that our island population is so unique; that it’s not unusual to find a family who’ve lived on Kaua’i forever living next to neighbors who have just discovered paradise; that if you choose to keep an open mind, you can gain so much from our diversity of cultures.
I’m thankful to live in a place small enough that cashiers ringing up your groceries tell you, “Your daughter-in-law was here earlier!” I’m thankful for the smile and kind words our friendly neighborhood pharmacist and his staff always dispense with our prescriptions.
I’m thankful that people here still let you slip into traffic when it’s backed up.
I’m thankful that I can rarely walk into a grocery store or a shopping center without running into someone I know.
I’m thankful for the chance to chuckle when you learn that your children’s teacher is one of YOUR former teachers or your grandchildren’s favorite teacher is someone who went to school with you.
I’m thankful that the community is such that it isn’t unusual that the mayor knows you by name.
And although he may miss his spectacular ocean view, I’m especially thankful to learn that our Wailua Beach tenant has finally gotten a home.
Kaua’i isn’t perfect. There are many things that could be better and many things that should be addressed.
But to paraphrase a bumper sticker I once saw, I firmly believe that the worst day on Kaua’i is better than the best day anywhere else. At this time of year, it’s so much more fitting to focus on the positive, rather than the negative.
There’s a time and place for everything. This is the time to give thanks for the good things we have.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who makes Kaua’i the special place that it is for all of us!
