Attitude of Gratitude

It is hard for me to grasp and hold onto an attitude of gratitude this Thanksgiving season when, as I write this, Ferguson, Missouri is in a state of chaos. Please understand that I am not going to use this column to vent my personal viewpoint as to whether the grand jury’s decision was right or wrong. Rather, I want to share my confusion.

I don’t understand why the residents of Ferguson are hell-bent on destroying their own neighborhoods and business district(s). It seems to me that those who are busy looting and starting fires, not to mention throwing rocks and firing weapons, are doing more harm for their cause (expressing their displeasure) than good. The businesses that are being looted and burned serve the very people who are rioting in the street. I don’t get it.

It reminds me of the riots in Los Angeles in 1992. My husband was working as a reserve police officer was called out to work. He told stories of when he was stationed outside a big box store how a carload of thugs, toting guns, drove into the parking lot with the intention of robbing the store. Thankfully they left without a shot being fired. But what was robbing a retail store going to prove? How was that going to further their cause or garner the respect that protesters demand?

In the case of Ferguson, didn’t the parents of Michael Brown, the young man who was shot and killed by a police officer, earn the respect of the nation when they asked their community to refrain from rioting? And how awful for them that they had to ask their community – their friends and neighbors – not to destroy their own town as they mourned the death of their son.

While I am not commenting on my understanding of the motivation behind the rioting, I am commenting on the rioting. My comment is brief: I don’t understand why people destroy the very places where they live and do business – I just don’t get it.

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Moving past my confusion (and sadness) over Ferguson, I do want to share with you some of the things that I am grateful for this Thanksgiving.

This is our sixth Thanksgiving at the CV Weekly and Mary O’Keefe and I were just talking about how quickly time has gone by. Because of the hard work of the staff here and the support of our readers and advertisers, the paper has thrived despite being launched in one of the worst recessions in this nation’s history.

I know that part of our success is the love we have for the Crescenta Valley and our eagerness to share with our friends and neighbors all that goes on – both the good and the bad. We feel connected to our community and it is my hope, as owner of the paper, that the CV Weekly helps others to feel connected as well. I believe that it is through this connection that our community is strengthened, which benefits us all.

I am thankful for my friends and family who have stood by me, especially these past several years, and for those who have cheered me on.

I am thankful for all those who volunteer at the many events and activities that are held here. For example, the Montrose Glendale Christmas Parade that is taking place along Honolulu Avenue the evening of Dec. 6. That gigantic undertaking is 100% volunteer-driven.

These are just a couple of the many things that I want to shout out a big Thanksgiving “thank you” for. I’m sure there are more but I think the tryptophan is kicking in and a nap sounds pretty good.

Happy Thanksgiving!

  robin goldsworthy