Thanksgiving 2012

I may have problems with who or what, exactly, I’m being thankful to, but I have no problem whatsoever figuring out what to be thankful for.

Wonderful family and great friends, as always, top the list.

Health is right up there, too.

I tend to take my own spectacularly good health for granted. The worst thing that’s happened to me in years is left-hand carpal tunnel, which is pretty much taken care of by wearing a hideous, flesh-tone (as in the old Crayola color”flesh”, which was rebranded as “peach” once Crayola realized that everyone didn’t have peachy-pinky flesh) brace to bed.

And then there’s my husband’s health, which has been problematic of late.

Still, I am completely thankful that Cancer One seems under control. Cancer Two – after radiation, chemo, and ghastly invasive surgery – remains at bay, with both our oncologist and surgeon assuring us that so far, Jim is experiencing an outcome that is “as good as it gets”. And possible Cancer Three, while it still needs to be looked at every three months, is, so far, not cancerous.

So I am exceptionally thankful for the doctors, nurses, radiation techs, and everyone else at Mass General Hospital who continue to take such good care of us. (Talk about counting our blessings: The Number One hospital in the country is a five-minute walk, which really came in handy last February when we had to make a 3 a.m. run to the ER.)

I am thankful for my home, even though we could use an additional 200 square feet. For my city, state, and country. (Go, Blue!) For my worldly possessions. For my work. For my blog.

And I’m thankful for St. Francis House, which provides such tremendous services to those who have a lot less to be thankful for than I do.

Here, from the website, is what SFH did in the past year for the poor and homeless of Boston:

• Served more than 315,350 meals

• Provided 9,387 showers

• Distributed 6,985 changes of clothes

• Provided nearly 12,000 counseling sessions on mental health issues, substance abuse, housing, employment, legal matters, and other issues

• Partnered with Boston Health Care for the Homeless to provide 9,135 medical appointments

• Trained 156 people in our First Step Employment Program

• Graduated the 118th class from the Moving Ahead Program (MAP), our vocational rehabilitation program, whose alumni now number more than 1,300

• Provided 56 units of permanent housing in our Next Step Housing Program

Thankfully, most of us don’t have to think about homelessness one way or the other. But, metaphorically speaking, objects in mirror are closer than they appear.

We are all only a degree or two of separation from those poor and homeless folks who come through the doors of St. Francis House looking for food, clothing, warmth, companionship, moral support, a doctor’s visit, and a chance to rebuild their lives.

I often tell this story:

A few years ago, I was in the Art Room, talking to a volunteer, and one of the guests overhead us talking about Emmanuel College (my alma mater, where the volunteer was a student). The guest – a fellow I knew, and who is the artist of the wonderful painting that hangs over my bed – mentioned that his sister-and-law and her mother wee both Emmanuel grads.

Oh, why not, I thought.

I asked Pete for their names.

His sister-in-law had been a classmate of mine in both college and high school, and I had also known her mother very well.

Small world, indeed.

If you’re reading this blog, it’s more than likely that, like me, you have much to be thankful for. If you also have a few dollars to spare, I hope that you consider a donation to St. Francis House.

And to those members of my family and to those friends who have so generously supported St. Francis House over the years, many, many thanks.

Happy Thanksgiving!