By Judith Kristen, AAP Columnist

Here I am, the “Gypsy of Pennsauken,” writing my Thanksgiving column to you from Los Angeles.

Looking back, I see that most all of my holiday columns are quite traditional, New Jersey based, and there’s certainly nothing wrong with that! But, I have a larger personal scope on this thing we call Thanksgiving this year, and I know no other column would work for me but this one.

Over the course of the last 12 months, I have been blessed in more ways than I can take in some times. I have also felt a lot of extreme sadness, disappointment, heartbreak, worry, and pressure. So be it. Just because I’m over the age of 65, that doesn’t mean I’m automatically exempt from the uglier realities of life. In fact, none of us are.

But what does make a difference for me is that I have learned to count my blessings first, be hopeful, and express gratitude for every day I have, leaving the sadness to be put in a quick yet proper perspective. I take 15 minutes, every day (yes, only 15), to mull over the issues plaguing me; some I figure out quickly and dismiss, others take a little longer. But they’re all a work in progress, and eventually, there’s an effective and doable ending.

In my recent travels, and there has been a multitude of them, I have reached out to many people to find the answers to quite a few of life’s most pressing issues. Friends, friends of friends, fellow passengers of airplane rides, freelance writers, authors, doctors, animal rescue volunteers, the homeless, those who work in homeless shelters, firemen, police officers, teachers… the list is long and diverse. And the rock bottom line, according to these people is that an “every day” Thanksgiving consists of love, compassion, friendship, service to others, gratitude, and hope.

Sometimes we fail to remember that. I have listened to a woman in a frenzied work-up over the ding in her beautiful new Range Rover, and on the very same day, witnessed a young mother, staying at a homeless shelter with her two children by her side, giving thanks for the food placed before them, and the safe haven they had to sleep that night.

I have flown next to a man who rolled his eyes while saying a curt goodbye to his crying daughter, to instead talk, in a quite friendly manner, to a well-heeled pal who got great seats for both of them at Giants Stadium. He turned to me in what appeared a twinge of guilt. “My daughter has problems at college. But who didn’t?”

I have listened to acquaintances moan over the fact that their vacation was cut short and so they only had two weeks in Ocean City. And that very night, I got a phone call from a friend in California, informing me that her cancer was back and the doctors gave her just six months to live. She was at peace with herself, and still managed to be hopeful that things would turn around. She made sure to let me know that she was grateful for every day she had left, no matter how they were numbered, and that she loved me.

So here we are at Thanksgiving, and what do you have to be thankful for?

The answer is everything.

Time is short and it’s precious. Things are just that: things. Fleeting fancies are just that: fleeting.

So, I agree with those wise and loving people who so easily said to me that love, compassion, friendship, service to others, gratitude, and hope are the mainstay and purpose in all of our lives. It’s the stuff that makes us worth our salt. Our permanent year-round Thanksgiving.

Peace and love and all good things. And a happy and lasting Thanksgiving to you and yours.

See you next month!

Love,

~Judy