INCLUSION & RESPECT | NOVEMBER 25, 2021

My Hopesgiving

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Nineteen percent of all Americans agree with me (or I with them). It is humble and human to appreciate the goodness in our lives, to recognize where light illuminates the dark, and to share whatever bounty we may have with our loved ones. The spark we light every Thanksgiving grows throughout the holiday season and provides warmth that sustains us all year.

But I’d like to propose a change.

Exchange of a flower — Photo by Ollinka/Shutterstock.com

Giving thanks is generally a matter of looking back at where our lives have been, and at the present to see where our lives have brought us.

But what comes next?

Hope.

Hope is our expression of brotherhood with the future. It is our expression of desire for a bounty of things to be thankful for next year, for the years after that, and for our children’s years after that. Hope also contains in it a kernel of the intention to make that future happen.

Me? I give thanks for the kindnesses bestowed by my fellow beings. And my hope for the future is to see an even greater brotherhood amongst all races, sexes, nationalities, political parties, cultures, of all religions or no religion, of all men and all women. I’ll be a constant presence on this blog so that I can make my voice heard and make a dent in that future. I hope you’ll read me. I hope, if the spirit moves you, that you’ll write and submit your own contributions to the cause, whether you are a Scientologist or not. I hope we can join in making this world a better place.

That is my “Hopesgiving.”

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AUTHOR

Leland Thoburn

Leland has been a Scientologist for 45 years. His writings have been published in numerous magazines and literary journals, including Foliate Oak Review, Writers’ Journal, Feathertale Review, Calliope, Vocabula Review and others. Formerly an executive at EarthLink Inc., he works as a business consultant.

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