The Roads that take Us Home

Bear with me, everything makes me reflective, this time of year.

A road is a funny thing. Each one leads to somewhere, and away from somewhere else. The difference between the two, is the direction the traveler is moving. 

Thanksgiving is the great traveling holiday. I always think about roads at Thanksgiving. It must have something to do with that song "Over the river and through the woods (to Grandmother's house we go)." 

When I was young, we were always on the road to my grandma's house each Thanksgiving, and there was a portion of the highway that ran over the Ogden River, and through a small stretch of "woods." We could NEVER pass that place without someone mentioning that song. To this day, I can't pass that stretch of road without thinking of the song. I still feel compelled to mention it too. 

Roads lead us to many places -- to school, to work, to our wedding, to the place of our birth and the birth of our children,  and to the place of our final rest. Some roads take us to places we should not go, and some lead us to sacred ground. 

I think about the roads I once took, to places that I haven't been in many years. I think about the roads I may travel someday, and the roads that lead to places I may never see, but maybe my children will. 

I know it's a cliche, but for me, at Thanksgiving, all roads lead home. Home is more than a structure, more than an address. Home is love and joy and acceptance -- at least it should be. Home is where you want to be, more than anywhere else on Earth. 

So here's to the roads you'll travel this Thanksgiving.

May they be beautiful. 

May they be safe. 

May they lead you home, wherever that is.

Happy Thanksgiving. 

Ok, Let's talk about change...

The candidate I voted for did not win.

This is America, and that's the way it goes sometimes.

I respect the process by which we elect our national representatives, and I accept the will of the people, as the supreme sovereign voice in this country.

That doesn't mean I'm happy. Nor does it mean I'm mad.

I'm discouraged.

Democracy is messy stuff, and no one will ever be content all the time. That's one of our greatest strengths as a nation -- we're ill at ease. We want more. We want better solutions. We want higher achievements. We want to be better than we were before. We reach. We fight. We stretch. We grow. We bend. We break. We rebuild. We strive for the thing that is just out of reach.

At least we used to.

Lately we just fester and dig in our heels. We divide and no one conquers. We're stagnant and we're petty. We're self righteous and self absorbed. We're dying. Spiritually, morally, physically...economically...in every way, we're dying.

Something needs to change.

I direct the following to President Barack Obama:

Sir,

Four years ago, you promised us hope and change. Hope only gets you so far, and nothing has changed. At least not for the better. In every way, this nation is in worse shape than it was when you took office. And I don't lay that all at your feet, and this is not a castigation of your policies -- it's a plea for change.

Four years ago you had the chance to be something special -- a President and not a partisan. You squandered that opportunity. Tonight the pundits began talking about your legacy -- what you will leave behind. For what will you be remembered?

Be a headline in History, sir, and not a footnote.

Astound us.

Once again, you have the chance to bring real change to this nation. Use that power wisely. We are heading for a cliff, and we're running downhill. A six billion dollar campaign season got us to exactly where we already were -- the status quo. Your party holds the Senate and the Presidency, their party holds the House, and the truth is, the Republicans aren't going to budge -- and neither would the Democrats, if the roles were reversed. Which puts the ball back in your court.

Change things. You have the power. And, you have nothing to lose.

Heal this country.

Walk across the aisle, and work with them. Your nation needs you, more than ever before, to be the bigger man.

We need you to change the direction we are headed.

We need you to change the political dialog in this country.

We need you to accept the mantle of leadership, and learn to lead by example.

You have the choice to determine your own legacy.

For your sake, and for mine, and for this nation that we both love, I hope your legacy is one that the unborn generations will look back on as the moment when everything changed.

For the better.

God Bless America,

A Concerned Citizen