There are so many things for me to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving. The normal things people say, like good health, yes Im thankful. A wonderful wife, Denita, who takes care of and puts up with me, at every turn. Two kids, Kevin and Chelsah, who each have their own special attributes and whom I love beyond description. But, tonight I am also thankful for the not so normal, at least it appears to be less and less normal....Im thankful to have grown up in a small Ozarks community that has accepted me for who I am and more importantly has accepted so many people for who they are...as parts of this Nation are being torn apart, Im thankful to be from a place where an African-American was a police officer some 30 to 40 years ago, when it wasnt the norm. Where a female was Mayor and a member of the military, as a high ranking officer, again more than 30 years ago, before it was the norm. Im thankful to be from a community, where a Native American was recognized for his heroism, in saving a young white Neosho girl from a burning vehicle, after a crash, once again 30 some years ago.......my point is, many people make jokes about the Ozarks being backwoods, about the racist people who troll these parts, about people around here being hicks. Well, this year Im thankful to be one of these hicks and call Neosho home. Weve obviously figured out how to value one another as individuals, without regard to skin color or other differences. Is it perfect here, no, of course we have more to learn, but we still support law and order and most importantly, as evidenced by the Joplin Tornado, we still support one another when the chips are down. I like that. Im blessed. We are all blessed. Thank you God, for allowing me to experience this part of the World. Im thankful.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Nov 2014 05:37:57 +0000