Moneyball: A Thanksgiving Message from Carolyn Gilbert

• Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday.  Over the years, I’ve come to refer to it as the National Butter Festival. I think I love it because there are no real demands beyond food and family and friends. No mandatory gifting. No interminable build-up with parties you might not really want to go to. No business obligations are to be fulfilled. I’ve had 50+ people in my home in the past — and this year, we’ll be 8. We’re losing the turkey and going for surf & turf this year… with stuffing, sweet potatoes & a great recipe for mashed potatoes to round out the butter-soaked cuisine. Because, you know, tradition!

Frankly, the uncertainty of the world, daily crises, and fears for the future could easily put a damper on the holiday this year. As I get older, I’ve found that wisdom involves gaining perspective.  Every crisis isn’t the ultimate crisis.  So much personal upset can be avoided through the thought, ‘Will this matter in a year?’ Most of the time, it won’t matter in a week. Or a day. Or an hour. And beyond figuring out what isn’t worth our energy to be upset about, perspective absolutely involves gratitude.

As I look at this time in history, and think about events in the world, I think about the overwhelming obstacles all of our ancestors dealt with in order to survive. My own mother told stories of life during the Depression when they had no idea where enough food for their family dinner that night would come from. So, when I look at my life, I realize that I’m pretty much a spoiled brat. While there have been what I might have called ‘hard times,’ the pantry has always been full. The heat and AC work fine. There’s a box of entertainment on my wall, on my counter, in my hand. Clothing, shelter, food, a warm bed, my health, and the health of those I love. Wow. How blessed I am! How blessed my family is. How blessed my friends are. And yet, we manage to bitch and moan fairly easily. Always have.

So, I think I’d prefer to take a step back. The world is a volatile place. It’s frustrating not having control over what happens out there. There are wars. There is famine. There are natural disasters. Nothing is guaranteed. And the thing is, it never has been. All of the good stuff could change in an instant. It’s happened before…

For me, it’s time to pause; to understand what’s in my control and do the very best I can with what I have. And it’s time to let go of what is not in my control. That leaves me with nothing but gratitude. A day for Thanksgiving, especially now, seems very well-timed.

I think of Viktor Frankl‘s Man’s Search for Meaning, where immediately following the darkest of times in history he says: ‘Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.’

I choose freedom. And that starts with gratitude. For my family, and my friends, and for those wonderful people with whom I’ve built NuVoodoo — my second family. For everything I have. For all the joy I’ve been so fortunate to share. Should it all end tomorrow, I can be nothing but thankful for everything that has preceded today.

So, my message is simply to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. May it be a day of friends, family, food, and BUTTER. And of course, a day to be grateful for all of our blessings and remember that ultimately, our attitude and the context in which we hold things, are our greatest gift, and completely in our control.