“Until I met a blind man, who taught me how to see…
A blind man, who could change night into day…
and if I can, I’ll make you come with me…
Here comes the sun, and will be chasing all the clouds away.”
That Aerosmith song reminds me that this Thanksgiving, there is one thing I am REALLY thankful for this Thanksgiving.
I could offer a bunch of cliches that are as sincere as they are repeated. I could say how thankful I am to be a free American in the greatest nation in the history of mankind. I could be thankful for our troops, and for how much I honor them.
All of that is true, but many people feel that way, as they should.
I could give in to my sophomoric side and thank any Republican brunette or Jewish brunette for letting me play with their yummy bouncies. For the ones who were Republican and Jewish, the gratitude will never be enough. They were fantastic.
I could celebrate sloth, not an honorable thing to do. I mean who doesn’t like watching 10 straight hours of football and gorging on food? Most people I know are normal.
I am thankful that somebody wrote a brilliant column about the 32 rules for playing family touch football on Thanksgiving Day.
Yet what I am really thankful for on Thanksgiving is something some people do not have.
I can see. I have the gift of full sight.
I have never been legally blind, but my poor eyesight has required glasses. I had to wear them since I was a kid, and I never liked them. They get broken, they get lost, they need to be updated, they fall out of fashion. I never tried contacts, but glasses were just a hassle.
A few months ago I had LASIK eye surgery. Thank almighty God, it worked.
I remember waking up the day after the surgery, looking around, and realizing that I could see everything crystal clearly.
I even work it into my speeches.
“What do you call a man named Eric who can see everything crystal clearly? Well you don’t call him Attorney General.”
Sometimes when I lose perspective I look out my condo window. Things that were far away are now closer.
In a few years I will need reading glasses, but for now I enjoy just having the full gift of sight I have not had since I was in fourth grade.
Thank you God. You created a beautiful world. I am so happy to see it in all its wonder.
To those who are blind, may God restore your sight.
To those who can see, love life.
Happy Thanksgiving.
eric