Today, I will not think about the hurdles I have missed, the losses that I have experienced, the abiding sorrow that has rooted in my soul. Instead, I will cultivate peace and consider some of blessings of this year: 

I am thankful this year for the time I spent watching hummingbirds while my youngest snoozed in our hammock and our pups sprawled on the warm sun-spotted deck, feet twitching as they dreamed their doggie dreams. 

I am thankful for good health for myself and my family and for whatever good fortune has allowed us, thus far, to avoid the catastrophe of COVID-19. 

I am thankful for the many, many people working in hospitals who have sacrificed their physical and mental health, their time with family, their personal safety to care for the hundreds of thousands of people who have been hospitalized with this mysterious disease. 

I am thankful for honest public servants who have done their best — with little guidance — to keep us safe. 

I am thankful for Zoom calls, text messages and emails with friends and family.

I am thankful for Animal Crossing and Breath of the Wild and virtual Jackbox game nights and Discord Terraria with my kids.

I am thankful for grief abated by joy and for hope.

It will be a difficult Thanksgiving for more than 260,000 families who have lost someone to COVID-19. Take care of yourselves so that it won’t be an even more difficult Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, 2021 for your family, without you.

Stay safe. Stay home. Wear a mask.