I know tomorrow will be tough for many. Faced with the pressure to be thankful, I will be thinking of those who will grit their teeth and try to get through the day as bravely as possible. In the year of 2020, many people will understandably not be in the Thanksgiving mood.

Many people might not feel like celebrating Thanksgiving this year.

For those of us who were spared the hardships of the first nine months of the pandemic, I think we need to realize that it isn’t a “happy” Thanksgiving for many. Let us keep this in mind if we are lucky enough to be in a celebratory mood tomorrow.

As I mentioned, there will be many people who have every reason to not be in a thankful disposition on Thursday. Sickness, depression, lost of loved ones, furloughs/layoffs, and many other COVID-related outcomes will make this holiday a tough one.

Now I realize that throwing out any type of a silver lining to people going through real issues might seem completely insensitive. On the other hand, I also know people who appreciate bits of positivity when life is tough. So, if you are grasping for even the slightest nugget to be thankful for, I can think of a few recent developments that we can all be thankful and hopeful for.

I have no business trying to suggest that folks going through real tough issues this holiday might find comfort in what I am about to say. But, for those who do enjoy a little silver lining, at least we have had these snippets of good news this month…

• Vaccines with very high effective rates are being announced. Yesterday, it was reported that at least one of these vaccines will be available by early December.
• The election came and went without the widespread violence that many people warned of. Prayers for peace were answered.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average broke 30,000 for the first time ever yesterday.

While none of these three things will automatically stop the bleeding and pain that so many Americans are dealing with right now, perhaps we can all count them as things to be thankful for—especially the vaccine developments.

Tomorrow will be different for everybody. Let’s remember that and reach out to those who might need some encouragement. Don’t Blink.