Plenty to be thankful for in modern world

The first American Thanksgiving feast was celebrated over a three-day

period in 1621 in Plymouth, Mass., with European settlers sitting

down with about 90 Native Americans to meals consisting mostly of

wild game and fish. The fact the settlers were eating anything at all

was probably the greatest cause to celebrate that year -- the first

winter in Massachusetts had wiped out fully half of the original

Plymouth colonists.

It was a far different time of thanks in America than we find

today. The gratitude expressed around the turkey in 1621 pretty much involved the very basics, such as “Boy, am I thankful I didn’t get

the smallpox this year,” and “Boy, am I glad I didn’t freeze to death

last January,” and “Gee, am I grateful I ran faster than Bob when

that bear was chasing us.”

Times have changed considerably since then, as have the kinds of

fortunes for which Laguna residents can count themselves thankful.

There are, for sure, more things to be grateful for than the gift of

life.

We can be grateful for a vast network of volunteers who provide

goods and services for families and individuals who are faced with

poverty or who are homeless. Volunteers deliver lunches to seniors,

not just on holidays, but throughout the year. Other volunteers

coordinate fund-raisers that benefit the Friendship Shelter, Laguna

Shanti, the Boys and Girls Club or artists in need.

Local service groups raise funds so that charities can continue

helping the homeless, putting together literacy and art projects for

young and old, and running programs for people living with AIDS or

cancer.

And we can be grateful for this community that prides itself on

its commitment to maintaining its quality of life and ensuring this

is one of the best places to live

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody.