[thanks]

I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a brilliant, beautiful, loving wife, a pleasant home with good friends living nearby, a job I love. My family is doing well. My sister is graduating from college this spring, and my brother, after a period of great personal struggle, is settling happily into college life. I'm thankful for the wealthy democracy I live in, and for the opportunities I had this year to participate in the political process, and for the end results of that process. I'm thankful for a thousand small things: brunch, autumn leaves, the left lane, thermostats, MP3s, well made shoes, wasabi peas, etc.

Life is good. Thank you to everyone who is a part of that for me.

And in honor of the holiday, as I tend to do every year, I will once again repost the fantastic material I gathered from my Korean students when this most American of holidays rolled around back in 2002.

Yesterday for reasons having nothing to do with Thanksgiving and everything to do with inept management, Jenny and I had middle school classes for which the lesson was not pages from a textbook, as usual, but "ACTIVITY." When I asked our boss, Yu-jin, what the ACTIVITY was, she sort of laughed and said, "You make." So among other things to fill the hour, Jenny and I decided to teach our kids about Thanksgiving and have them write what they are thankful for. It ain't as good as eating turkey and stuffing, but reading the results was good fun, and here are the best of them.

In the category of family relations:

I'm thankful for mother.
I'm thankful for father.
I'm thankful for brother.
I'm thankful for sister.
I am thankful for my cousins
I'm thankful for uncle's son here.
I'm thankful for my dog here.
I am thankful for my parents because they help me for grow up and they care of me.

In the category of the religious:

I'm thankful for GOD.
I am thankful that I can go to church
I'm thankful for God Almighty.
I am thankful for my zezus.

In the category of the undeniably useful:

I'm thankful for my pen.
I am thankful that I can buy things.
I'm thankful for oxygen.
I am thankful that I can walk
I am thankful that I can eat
I am thankful that I wear clothes.
I am thankful that I can speak Korean
I am thankful for house
I'm thanksful for my air
I am thankful that I can learn
I am thankful for weather forecast
I am thankful that I was born, I have family and I live in Korea.
I am thankful that I can take a shower.

In the category of things yummy:

I am thankful for foods.
I'm thankful for eat many food.
I'm thankful for I eat past food.
I'm thankful for chicken.
I'm thankful for pizza.
I'm thankful for ice-cream.
I'm thankful for cookies.

In the category of the (accidentally?) poetic:

I'm thankful for my favorite thing.
I'm thankful for my hate thing.
I'm thankful for moon
I thankful for my life
I thankful for earth.
I thankful for many scientist.
I'm thankful for HOT.
I'm thankful for many trees and many rivers.
I'm thankful for mountins.
I'm thankful for earth.
I'm thankful for windy.
I'm thankful for a red sky.

In the category of fun:

I'm thankful that have good time
I am thankful that I can see B.S.B.
I am thankful that I can watch TV.
I am thankful that I can play computer games
I am thankful that I can run.
I am thankful that read a books.
I am thankful that I talk with my friends
I am thankful that I can listen to music
I am thankful that I can play the piano.
I am thankful that I can go to the beach
I am thankful that I can swam in the ocean
I'm thankful for Christmas.
I'm thankful for my birthday.
I don't thanful that I have to do my homework

In the category of things that warm a teacher's heart:

I am thankful that I study English
I'm thankful for go to the academy.
I am thankful for that my teachers are give a knowledge
I am thankful that my English teacher are teach me.
I am thankful that I can study
I am thankful that I have to do my homework
I'm thankful for Josh teacher

And in the category of silly English, which reminds me how much work there is to do:

I am thankful that I can see anythings
I'm thankful for many money.
I'm thankful for born in 1990.
I'm thankful for my wear.
I'm thankful for car, because we ride a car, we go fast.
I'm thankful for shoes, because we don't wear shoes, we hurt our feet
I'm thankfor for telephone, because we say hello for our freinds for telephone
I am thankful that pencil because write a English and Korean letter
Because I learned a lot with they.
Because I can see anything.
Because I learn at books.
I'm thankful for air, rice, head, eye, computer, clothe, money, my house, Korean, pencil, brother, glasses.

Happy Thanksgiving!