Friday Gratitude

Today I am thankful because I am an American, and in particular, a Tucsonan. My country has its faults and Lord knows I can't stand our leader - but I have grown up in a country where there is plenty of everything to go around. People aren't killing each other over religious differences. We have freedom of speech, and a working democracy. The part of our country and my city I am most thankful for is the people. I am thinking about this because of the fires in California that have destroyed people's homes and places of employment. I can already see the reactions of the people in my city. Someone in my school district is organizing a drive to collect toiletries for those people. I saw on the local news that other organizations are rallying to support those who have lost everything. I suspect it will be like when Katrina hit and the people of New Orleans were devastated. When the rest of America realized what was happening, there was an outpouring of time, money, material things, and a willingness to help. When people are in trouble, there are a whole lot of Americans who ask what they can do to help. I think that is a really great thing. It makes me proud.