Happy Thanksgiving...

I had a really great Thanksgiving...

Ate and visited with with family...met up with some friends in Wichita and talked for hours:):):)......hung out with family...all my family in Wichita...my dad and step-mom, my sister, her boyfriend, and her two daughters...met up with my Grandma Miller (my holidays are all primarily spent with my dad's mom...the grandma who has totally been there for us much of our lives, my Grandma Sutherland)...played with the kids...had a great talk with my sister and her very nice, very decent boyfriend...the first nice guy that Liz has brought home, I think (I've always gotten along with my sisters' boyfriends...but Drew is authentically a nice guy...which is a refreshing and healthy change of pace for her, I think:):)...

Discussed and debated politics...which becomes more interesting the clearer it becomes how much some of my family, and lots of folks, of course, spend too much of their lives in the propaganda circles and swimming in the political bullshit:):):)...

The weekend totally grounded me...

Humble folks, for the most part...living humble lives, for the most part...and a healthy andidote to the impossible bullshit that often passes for decency that I and everyone has to deal far too much with in our lives...

My friend, Christy, introduced me to her really great husband and daughter...and we had a great time catching up...and talking...and playing video games:):)...

And watching videos of Christy and I and our friends in high school...

And the whole time I'm watching the videos, I'm thinking...we were all pretty good kids...it was really great watching us growing up...and being kids...I've never seen video of myself at this age...an age with I was very much exploring life in broader ways than I ever had before...and I was a pretty sweet kid, I think:):)...it gave me some perspective on my life...and how good a guy I've been...not always...but it gave me some perspective on what I good guy I've been most of my life...and some reason to be proud...my acting skills could have used some improvement, for sure:):)...but I was a pretty good kid:):):)...

It's nice being with people who know you and love you...it's grounding:):)...and it is nice, I have to say, to remember, that life doesn't have to be on fast-forward all the time...that life is fine and getting better...the more we work at it...but that it doesn't have to be a race to some kind of finish...no matter how much people push us or one another, as they still struggle to learn to be more decent people...

And to get some really great feedback about how much thoughtfulness really matters...and how much taking it seriously serves me...and serves all of us...

And...how it's still nice, sometimes...to just let go, for a while...and just relax and enjoy life:):)...

Some really great conversations...about movies...about education...about high school...about religion...about science...about politics...and about life...

And a really grounding Thanksgiving, overall...and a reminder about how important it is having mature people in your life who love you...as well as being loved by and loving the younger and less mature folks in your life, as well:):)...

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving:):)...

Love,
Ben