Last year on the eve of Thanksgiving, I wrote the following…
Under normal circumstances, I'm prone to churlishly refer to the impending holiday as Angstgiving, and issue some emphatic advisory to steer well clear of any divisive political topics `round the dinner table, if at all possible. This is still prudent advice, although I believe even the most strident Republicans in my family are somewhat at a loss, these days, to make sense of characters like Donald Trump and Ben Carson. In any case, I’ll be keeping my frequently pointed opinions to myself over the next couple of days as best I can. No easy feat, that.
That was then. This is now.
At this stage of the proceedings, I don’t think I need to expound any further on my misgivings about the recent election. Lots of folks seem to be calling for those burdened with such feelings to put them to one side and move forward -- to make the best of it, adjust and offer support. Personally, speaking, so long as people are still LITERALLY ‘SIEG HEILLING' Trump's victory and he does precious fuck-all to legitimately address and denounce it, I shan’t be doing that.
I am heartened, in a way, that Trump is predictably welching on some of the promises he made to his base. He’s not going to pursue locking Hillary up. He’s giving some ground on the topic of climate change. He’s conceding that his fabled wall might be fine as simply a fence. I’m mildly encouraged by that in the hopes that he’ll similarly refrain from messing with some of the other things he said he was going to dismantle. I’m also happy in that it’ll demonstrate to the folks that zealously voted to put him in office that he was -– of course -– a complete con man all along, merely telling his supporters what they wanted to hear in order to obtain his objective. Mission accomplished, suckers. Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?
That said, given the rogue’s gallery of human excrement that he’s surrounding himself with, it’s still way too early to be exhaling any sighs of relief.
As we spiral into the gaping beak of Thanksgiving, however, I feel that I would be entirely remiss in not expressing gratitude for the things I do have and enjoy. I’m about to cross my one-year anniversary at my job, and it’s been a very fruitful and rewarding experience for me. While we still face our own various challenges, my immediate family is largely happy and mercifully healthy. We still have some big decisions to make and hurdles to clear, but overall, we are in a good place. For that, I am truly grateful.
For the things that are out of my hands, here’s hoping the President-Elect and his flatulent gaggle of nogoodnicks don’t entirely fuck things up for the nation, its people and the planet writ large. That’s an opinion I’m going to endeavor to keep to myself this coming Thanksgiving, although my feelings on the subject have already been figuratively scrawled out in big, dripping red letters. I am not enigmatic in that capacity.
For whatever reason, while several other holidays have whole catalogs of music devoted to them, there don’t seem to be very many specific songs about Thanksgiving. That said, I mulled over a few (very arguably) appropriate selections like “Gratitude” by the Beastie Boys, “Thank You” by Led Zeppelin and …er… “Thanks” by the Wedding Present. There’s even a song by my beloved Killing Joke called “Gratitude,” although it’s from one of their least-realized efforts, to my mind, so I shan’t be dusting that one off. I then considered “Thank You” by SWANS, as that certainly fits the mood of the current climate (not least as it seems to be about flagellation and immolation … naturally), but decided that the hopeful and elegiac tone of “In Cythera” by Killing Joke really sums up the essence of the holiday.
Happy Thanksgiving. Rise above the squabble and be thankful for your loved ones. Who knows what tomorrow brings?
Saw, all those things,
I should have said,
While I had the time.
You, who stood by me,
When I lost the plot,
You were always kind.
All, through these mortal joys,
Through my anger,
And endless rain.
And during, my addictions,
Yet the love you showed,
Still remained the same.
I'm grateful,
For all the times we've shared.
Through struggles, and madness,
You're there.
I've seen you, in a dream,
On a sunny day, where the skies are clear.
I'll see you, in Cythera,
On an island, far away from here.
If I don’t return
Before your time is up
I promise to set your place
On the table with wine I fill your cup
And to, ourselves we lie,
As we, break down inside,
'cause we never, said enough,
How much we really loved.
I'm grateful,
For all the times we've shared.
Through struggles, and madness,
You're there.
I've seen you, in a dream,
On a sunny day, where the skies are clear.
I'll see you, in Cythera,
On an island, far away from here.
I'm grateful,
For all the times we've shared.
Through struggles, and madness,
You're there.
I've seen you, in a dream,
On a sunny day, where the skies are clear.
I'll see you, in Cythera,
On an island, far away from here.
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