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Thanksgiving Is Always

By Mark Foley  Posted by Rady Ananda (about the submitter)       (Page 1 of 2 pages)   No comments
Message Rady Ananda

I wrote this 'poem' a few years back and thought I'd share it again.

The US is celebrating "our" Thanksgiving tomorrow. Many countries celebrate Thanksgiving or similar such celebrations on other days, typically during the Fall as remnants of Harvest festivals. Regardless of the date, Thanksgiving is a time to pause and be with friends and family, to celebrate the abundance that Life provides to us. Thanksgiving is also an uplifting and healthy ritual to practice always.

Life is both a blessing and a challenge. In the times that we feel challenged, or somehow not met with our "desires" (which we often confuse from our essential needs), almost all of us can certainly remind ourselves to hold back from our complaints. Our feelings of "lack" are typically unfounded and instead we may consider the Abundance that surrounds us.

As an American, I also like to take time during our Thanksgiving to consider the sacrifice that the Native Americans endured over the past centuries as first the Europeans, then the entire world inundated North and South America. Genocide. Forced cultural integration. The horrors that we exacted upon mostly symbiotic cultures that held deep reverence for the Earth and the human relation to Her cannot be forgotten. It must become a lesson.

I am also Thankful for the Native American wisdom that finally finds a voice in our modern era of plurality. May it help to guide us all into a brighter future. May we transcend, maintaining and advancing our Cosmology through science and a sense for the higher purpose, as well as include all of the wisdom of every culture that has positively contributed to the success of our species.

Blessings to all family, friends and acquaintances that this goes out to.


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Great Goddess-God, Above, Below, Between

Thank you for the experience of life as a human being

Thank you for the family I was born into

And the formula that has made me be me

Thank you for all those wonderful souls

Who have come into my life

For those who make me laugh, make me cry, make me grow

Thank you for all the plants and animals

Including my primate human brothers and our cousins

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In 2004, Rady Ananda joined the growing community of citizen journalists. Initially focused on elections, she investigated the 2004 Ohio election, organizing, training and leading several forays into counties to photograph the 2004 ballots. She officially served at three recounts, including the 2004 recount. She also organized and led the team that audited Franklin County Ohio's 2006 election, proving the number of voter signatures did not match official results. Her work appears in three books.

Her blogs also address religious, gender, sexual and racial equality, as well as environmental issues; and are sprinkled with book and film reviews on various topics. She spent most of her working life as a researcher or investigator for private lawyers, and five years as an editor.

She graduated from The Ohio State University's School of Agriculture in December 2003 with a B.S. in Natural Resources.

All material offered here is the property of Rady Ananda, copyright 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009. Permission is granted to repost, with proper attribution including the original link.

"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." Tell the truth anyway.

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