While we deal with some pretty heavy material on this site, it's important to remember we all have a tremendous amount to be thankful for.
Thanks to Chris, we're aware of the interplay among the Three Es and how things are likely to unfold. Take a moment to appreciate that gift – the vast majority of those yet to swallow the 'red pill' are still sleepwalking into the future unprepared.
Thanks to our still-functioning societies & economies, we have time. Time to debate & process the implications of peak oil and to take informed steps to increase our resiliency to them – in our investment portfolios, in our homes, and in our communities.
And thanks to each of us, we have this site – a collective of smart and encouraging individuals doing their best to "figure it all out" and help each other do the same. Your forum contributions, comments, and feedback are making this site the pre-eminent resource on the Web for those seeking to prepare for an uncertain future.
So this year, I'd like to invite us to share our Thanksgiving experiences with each other. What are you thankful for? Where do you find meaning in this holiday? It can be a photo of the spread on your Thanksgiving table (with dishes sourced from your own garden, perhaps). Or a few simple words of gratitude for the blessings in your life. Even a shot of Uncle Ralph passed out on the barco-lounger in full turkey-coma will do….
Don't make this anything complicated. Just share from the heart. Something to make this virtual community just a little bit more personally connected.
I'll start: I'm of course thankful for my girls (wife + two daughters) and the family that will be around my Thanksgiving table. I feel incredibly fortunate to have partnered with Chris and the talented CM.com team (really, another family for me) and to have *finally* aligned my professional career with my personal principles.
And I feel privileged for the way this community has both welcomed me and is investing in the efforts to evolve this site. I hear from a great number of you on a daily basis with ideas, contributions, critiques, and encouragement. It all helps tremendously. I hope you're as proud as I am of some of the recently launched features – like the 'What Should I Do?' and 'Straight Talk' series – that simply wouldn't be possible without the direct participation of you, our members. So simply, I offer you all a heartfelt "thanks".
The photo below shows where I'll be spending Thanksgiving dinner. A family friend is hosting us in her restored 19th-century New England barn (during the rest of the year, it's frequently rented out by Pottery Barn for photo shoots). The big farm table is just off camera – but I'll post another photo in the comments below once everyone sits down to the spread. The whole shebang is a pretty picture-perfect setting….
Lastly, I'm thankful to go "off program" and eat some meat. I'm a vegetarian the rest of year, but Thanksgiving just wouldn't be Thanksgiving without tryptophan overload from too much turkey and – more important – Grandma Ida's Swedish meatballs (Ida left us years ago, but my wife still follows the recipe).
All the best to you and yours this Thanksgiving and – if you have the opportunity – please share your own reasons for thanks with us below.
cheers,
Adam
by tycernc