Thanksgiving 2014: Is it possible to be thankful?

Thanksgiving.  Is it possible to be thankful in 2014?  I think so, let’s talk about that.

I’m 5-foot, 3-inches tall and that makes me downright short by national standards.  It’s been proven time and time again that folks as short as me don’t generally get a fair shake.  Let’s take a peek at the list of “disadvantages” folks like me have:

• Ladies tend to see short men as less attractive.
• Men tend to not want to be friends with short men.
• Short men are less likely to be hired for a job.
• Short men on average earn less than a tall man for the same job.
• And of course, we are ALWAYS chosen last for a sports team.

And it’s a “double whammy” in my case because I’m now also going bald, and guess what, bald men undergo the exact same prejudices!  So, right about now you may be asking what this has to do with being THANKFUL.  Well my friend, that’s an easy one; I’m thankful to be a short, bald man living in the United Stated of America, where there is only one disadvantage that really matters: a bad attitude.  I’m reminded of the catch-line of Russian-American comic Yakov Smirnoff: “America, what a country!”

I love this country, where disadvantaged folks like me can parlay a “glass is half-full” attitude and a good work ethic into a seriously great life.  From the moment I hit kindergarten, I’ve known I was fighting an uphill battle.  I was the shortest kid in my class, and kids can be really brutal in letting you know just how inferior a thing like that makes you!  It could have destroyed me, but it didn’t, it made me stronger.  I began to instinctively know that I would have to be better than average at everything I did if I were to see any real success in life.  A Tall, dark, and handsome guy may be able to be an inept idiot and still get whatever he wants when he flashes his 100-watt smile, but not me!  And I wouldn’t have it any other way.  When I get the job, it’s a damn sure thing that I earned it.  When someone is my friend, they probably REALLY like me.  And, chances are my wife really loves me, too.   See where I’m going with this?  Yea, I’m thankful God made me just the way I am; I’m a better man because of the built-in adversity I continually face.

And so, on this Thanksgiving, please dear friend, take whatever disadvantages you may be facing in life and put them to work for you.  If, like me, you are fortunate enough to be living in the USA, consider yourself blessed.  This country has a rich history of disadvantaged folks from all walks of life rising to astronomical success, both personal as well as professional.

Seriously folks, I hope yours is an attitude of gratitude, because if it is, you are probably a happy person with a bunch of real friends and folks who love you for who you are … and on this Thanksgiving Day, I’d like to propose that having true friends is what we should be truly thankful for.

Oh, and if that isn’t enough, there’s always the “black Friday” sale here at WGS! If you enter the code: GIVETHANKS2014, you'll get 15% off all speakers, pickups, and other goodies.  Ha!  Feeling a little more thankful now?  Yep, I thought so.

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