2015 - Not Taking Life for Granted

Dear Friends and Family:

Welcome to the 9th Annual Kerns Thanksgiving Missive. For the past 8 years I have subjected my old work colleagues, family and friends to a missive about my personal reasons for being thankful, whether they wanted to hear it or not.  It is about why I am thankful for the opportunity to experience the love and friendship of the people who make up my life and to be able to take advantage of the opportunities that present themselves to us every day.   

For those who are new to this tradition, welcome, and to those who are veterans I hope you’re not yet tired of receiving my annual message of “thanks”……

As always I have so much for which to be thankful; we are financially secure, we have great friends, we are in good health, (although I do need to shed more than a few pounds), there are three amazing young women in my life who happen to be my daughters and I am truly fortunate to have the love of a life partner as amazing as Jeanmarie.   As always I have a lot for which to be thankful. However, this year I feel even more thankful.

There is much anxiety in the world right now. The uncertainty of world order is unsettling. We see this chaos every time we turn on the news or open a newspaper. The addiction epidemic rears its ugly head day in and day out.  Add to this the clown car that is masquerading as presidential candidates (Sorry, I usually don’t interject politics in this missive, but….COME ON!), and we can understand why we feel anxious for our future. In addition, it just seems to me that bigotry, hatred and apathy have been at record levels lately. So, why does this make me feel more thankful? I guess it’s because during a period of uncertainty it is the best time to take inventory of what we have in our lives, and what I have in my life is pretty damn good.

I try not to fall into the trap of taking things for granted, but like most of us I do falter now and then. There is a picture making its way around the internet currently. It is a father with is two young children waist deep in water trying to flee the horrors of Syria. The look of anguish on this man’s face, coupled with the hateful rhetoric being thrown at people like him smacked me out of whatever complacency that I may have been feeling.

This holiday season I pledge to make an extra effort to show my gratitude whenever and however I can.....starting with you, my friends and family. I am grateful for all of you even if I haven’t seen you for a while. Without you I would not be the same person that I am today (yes, I believe that’s a pretty good thing). Thank you for keeping me honest and grounded, but mostly thank you for being part of my life.

As always, while I am grateful for my past, it is the past and it can not be changed. The future can not be predicted, so I will do my best to focus on the present and try to live each moment with intention.

Please have a wonderful, safe and happy Thanksgiving.

All the best
Tom (a/k/a TK, #papakerns, Kernsy, Hit Man, grandpa and of course “tickles” – don’t ask)