Thanksgiving 2016

I hope you had a good Thanksgiving this week.  For me, it was a time to count my blessings. 

I'm thankful for my health.  I don't take it for granted.  It's what gets me up every morning and to the gym or out on the bike.  It's why Dr. Kevin Turner knows me on a first name basis. 

I'm thankful that my kids chose Blount County to live their lives.  That means those six wonderful grandchildren live here too. 

I'm thankful that Blount County is the kind of place where they want to spend the rest of their days.  The schools.  The community.  The mountains, lakes, and land.  

I'm thankful that I get to share my life through this space.  I used to be known as "Joe Black, the physical therapist."  Now I'm mostly known as "Joe Black, that guy that writes in the newspaper."

I'm an educator at heart (which was my first college degree) so this column serves as my main avenue to fulfill that.

I'm thankful for friends.  Lots of people criticize social media and smart phones but both of those allow me to stay in touch with those friends far and wide.

I'm thankful for football.  The sport I love above all others is under fire.  Interest in the NFL is declining.  Lots of parents are prohibiting their children from playing football.

Most of that has to do with injuries.  Chief among those are concussions. 

I get it.  I have those same concerns.  I played one game in high school that I don't even remember.  My son tells about getting slapped in the head so hard by a Florida State defensive lineman that he didn't remember  anything until he got to the sideline.

But I still believe it is the best sport out there (not the only sport by any stretch) for learning about teamwork and how hard work is rewarded.  Football helped make me the man I am today.

Interest waning?  I don't think so.  Tell that to college football fans all across the nation that continue to pack stadiums.  And I'll still insist that high school football games on Friday nights during the fall are the best place to be.

It's just up to me (and others) to do everything we can to make the sport as safe as possible.  Rule changes happen almost every year, almost always with the intent of making the game safer.

I'm truly thankful for all sports.  They teach life lessons, help create active adults, and make exercise fun. 

On a day where we are thankful for so many things, family, friends, food, the many blessings we all have, it is important to remember those not so fortunate.

Like the hungry.  The number of hungry people in the world exceeds the combined populations of the United States, Canada, and the countries of the European Union.

And the homeless.  33% of the children in the world don't have adequate shelter.

And those in poverty.  80% of the world's population get by on less than $10 per day.  And 3 billion people survive on $2.50 or less.  That's amazing.

So in this holiday season, share of your bounty.  Love everyone--we are taught that.  Pay It Forward.  Hug a stranger.  Be thankful not so much for a full belly but for a full heart.