I know that many of us have good memories of Thanksgiving. Some years might not have been so great or were downright difficult. Others leave many good memories. New marriages, new babies, new jobs, and all those other “new” life changes can be a rallying point to bring people closer together and recognize the relationships they cherish. Family feuds, partisan politics, issues related to money, and more can cause rifts to form between clans within a family. Some Thanksgivings are full of joy and gratitude. Others leave us unsatisfied and unthankful.

It seems to me that we are all getting a little irritable, a little cranky, about this whole pandemic thing. 
​We can pretend it is no threat or just yell at the virus and everything else. These, however, seem… well, unfruitful, shall I say? There is an answer that rises from faith, but if you’re like me, you may not like it.

​You sit in the optometrist’s chair and they say, “A or B?” as they flip lenses. The choice is binary, one or the other. You cannot pick both. You cannot say, “Neither.” When our son was young, we learned never to ask open ended questions like, “What vegetable do you want for dinner?” We said, “Peas or green beans?” Our whole data driven world is binary – ones or zeros. Binary choice. We humans like binary choices.

Are you a caregiver? Visit www.holytrinityankeny.org for practical information and resources on caregiving.
Most of us experience the care and compassion of caregivers from the moment we are born. They take care of our every need when we arrive home from the hospital. They raise us and teach us about living in the world. They groom us to one day live on our own and be self-sufficient. As adults we meet illness and injury, some minor and short lived. Some lasting much longer than we had hoped. During those times we need caregivers. They may be professional caregivers, but many times they are spouses or other family members. Chances are we all have experienced or know someone who has needed a caregiver.