This is the time when Americans

expect to feel gratitude.

For some, this year, it will

not come easily. I'm aware, myself, of mild depression, the dull background

ache of a sorrowing heart. Someone has taken the fun out of life. And

I think what hurts the most is knowing we'll never regain the innocence

that crumbled like concrete and steel on Sept. 11.

Some say it's time we were

jolted out of our naiveté and self-centeredness. Too cruelly, my

heart protests. No nation deserved Sept. 11. It will take years to rebuild

both our cities and our sense of security.

I have long believed that the

Marshall Plan was one of the most splendid undertakings in the history

of humankind, and I have every confidence we will repeat that magnificent

gesture for those who will suffer most in our present engagement. And

for that I give thanks.

Never mind the absence of nostalgia

and "warm fuzzies" this year. We must give thanks whether we

feel like it or not.

Thanksgiving is not optional,

after all. Most of us were taught that we owe our very being to a loving

God and, as children should express appreciation for the good gifts loving

parents give them, so should we to God. Moreover, our federal and state

governments have mandated a day for giving thanks since the first colonists

landed on these shores. Considering the winters that reduced their numbers

one can imagine our forebears occasionally going to the wellsprings of

thankfulness and finding them dry.

Thanksgiving is not optional.

It may not flow freely this year, as it did not flow freely during the

flu epidemics, the Great Depression, and the conflicts which have ensnared

us in virtually every decade. We may need to recite mechanically the blessings

of life after Sept. 11. Like children being reminded "What do you

say to Aunt Susie, honey?" we may mutter "Thanks" because

it is expected.

But say it we must. Giving

thanks is a habit instilled in childhood.

For that I give thanks. And

for our general well-being. For comforts taken for granted. For good memories.

For the love of family and friends. For health care unsurpassed in human

history. For the beauty of the earth, anytime, but especially now. For

public safety workers, defending us at home as never before. For leadership

in the least expected places.

And as we tell our children

after we remind them of how they've been blessed, our willingness to share

is the measure of our gratitude.

Gratitude and grace both words

are rooted in the Latin word for "pleasing."

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