Today many of us meet with loved ones to sit at a table and eat.
We binge eat in a sort of unwitting celebration of the largest genocide in history, in a world where currently 18,000 children starve to death every day.
In about the time it takes to eat one bite of our dinner, a child dies of starvation. Bite, death. Bite, death. Bite, death.
Yet, in this misery, we can find beauty.
It’s true; we are quick to ignore and neglect the suffering of our human brothers and sisters across the globe. We would turn away from the images of suffering and distract ourselves with TV, games, jokes, or the taste of delicious food.
However, we turn away because we care.
The psychopath has no need to turn away. Without empathy, he does not feel that gut-wrenching unpleasantness we do when we see or acknowledge this immense suffering of our extended global human family.
The hateful sadist takes pleasure in others’ pain. He feels not gut-wrenching unpleasantness but glee at the sight of suffering.
We feel the strong urge to neglect our human family precisely because we are neither psychopaths nor sadists but rather natural philanthropists–lovers of humanity.
So as we sit around our table with relatively immediate family and feel the urge to neglect the miserable horror in the world outside, let us find the beauty in the misery.
Let us give thanks, indeed. Let us give thanks to our respective more immediate families.
It is because of the inherent love of humans that any of us are even alive.
None of us could have survived without charity. We are all the living products of handouts.
We are born helpless. Not all species are like this. Humans are uniquely helpless both at birth and throughout the early years. It’s one of the keys to our humanity.
Even the toughest human baby dies without the incredible charity, the so common charity, of the surrounding humans.
The misery we feel when we resist the urge to neglect our more distant human family is a symptom of our inherent strong love. And our inherent strong love is what we have to thank for our very existence.
Whoever you are, I may have never met you, but I love you. I’m confident you’re bursting with both the pain and joy of your own beautiful love as well. Happy Thanksgiving! 🙂
What do you think? Are you thankful for your family? Please leave a comment and a “Happy Thanksgiving” in the comments below.
My good friend’s house burnt down two days ago I’m grateful they all lived. It’s still sad, but not as sad as losing one of the children.
So a family of seven is homeless, but the beauty is they’re still a family of seven.
Thanks for the post. It is important to remember that our strength is also our weakness. We look away because we have empathy, not because we don’t care. I hope we all are blessed with extra courage this season.
Scott, there are many issues in the world that need our attention. This is a very powerful one. To fix this issue, we must face and make it through many other issues. Our species is going through many changes right now. There is hope for us yet, as we have not self-destructed. Which we were on the edge of that taking place less than two decades ago. While we might go through some tremendous changes shortly on our planet, we will come out for the better afterwards. Once we do issues like this one can be dealt with. Currently, we have to get rid of the power/greedy/callous/rich mongers who are trying to enslave humanity to their goals. It’s not pretty. I thank you for your site and article. It is individuals like you who are acting that are helping us to change.
Yes, I am thankful. I’m thankful that I grew up in a time and place that offered good medicine for common childhood illnesses like strep throat, which can lead to rheumatic fever if left untreated, causing joint pain and heart murmur and eventual heart failure, which my poor mother had to endure. I had strep throat many times myself and if I had not been cared for I might have died. We always had food, simple but good wholesome meals. Happy Thanksgiving!
Wow, everyone, thank so much for your comments!
Kathy, I’m sorry to hear about your friend’s family’s house. I’m glad we can still see beauty even in tragedies like that. 🙂
Ted, great point about our strength also being our weakness.
Guy, thank you for your wise comments and kind words.
Mary, it’s a great trait to be thankful.
Thanks again!
I love this line so much:
“None of us could have survived without charity. We are all the living products of handouts.”
I am SO thankful for my family, as crazy and unconventional as it is. My mother was the most amazing woman ever; she taught me all about how family isn’t about blood. It’s about bond and love. What are these waterballs in my eyes now?!?! NO!!!