Be extra thankful this Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is two days away. For many of us adhering to the public health order guidelines associated with COVID-19, it’s going to be different this year. For those who lost loved ones this year, whether due to the virus or other reasons, holidays will never be the same.

The year 2020 has been difficult for millions of people. Whether they’ve been affected financially or lost their jobs or a loved one, suffering has been widespread since March. A vaccine for COVID-19 is on the horizon, but no one is certain when things will return to normal.

It’s easy to complain about everything that’s happened and continues to happen. We can’t live life normally. The days of running to the store for a forgotten item are gone. Now we have to mask up, stand in line to get in the store, then stand in line to get to the register. We sometimes spend more time standing in line, then we do actually going into the store to get what is needed.

We can’t go out to have a celebratory dinner with friends or family — and now, we can’t dine out at all. Yes, things are tough.

But for every obstacle we encounter, there are things to be thankful for. If you’re still employed, that’s a huge positive. If you haven’t lost anyone to COVID-19, that’s also a positive. And if you haven’t contracted the virus, that’s definitely in the plus column.

If you have family and/or friends that care about you and check up on you, or you do the same for someone else, consider yourself fortunate.

A text or phone call is all that’s needed to let someone know that you care.

While we can’t gather around the Thanksgiving table this year and celebrate the way we normally would, it’s important to count our blessings, no matter how small they may seem.