From Al Franken with Thanks. [View all]

[Guilded Lilly]

From his Facebook account, no link for those who wish to stay away from Facebook today! Hope this is OK:

I’ve always really loved Thanksgiving. There’s the food, obviously. Franni makes her gigantic apple pie, and I make this great stuffing with wild rice – the real stuff from northern Minnesota. And, of course, there’s family. Franni and I have two beautiful kids (with two wonderful spouses), and we’ve been blessed with three perfect grandkids to spoil, with a fourth on the way. It seems like, every year, our table gets a little bigger.

But I also love Thanksgiving because I believe there’s power in giving thanks. I know it sounds like something Stuart Smalley would say – “That attitude of gratitude – it ain’t just a platitude!” – but taking a moment to be grateful really can make you a happier person. Also, a better person.

Last Thanksgiving, though, wasn’t much fun. I tried to be thankful for my family, my friends, and my health, but those weeks were incredibly difficult for us Frankens.

Over the last year, I’ve heard from so many of you – kind notes, supportive comments here on Facebook, people coming up to me at the grocery store or the gas station or the Vikings game to say hi. And it’s meant a lot to me and my family. Representing Minnesota in the Senate was the greatest job I’ll ever have, and I miss it more than you know.

I’ve also spent a lot of time over this past year thinking about the broader conversation we’ve been having about the experience of women in this country. I know that, for so many people, this issue raises a lot of powerful and painful feelings. This conversation can also be incredibly complicated. I don’t think it’s my place to weigh in on all the debates – but I will continue to listen and learn.

What I will say, though, is that, after a year of reflection, I’m finding it a lot easier to be grateful this Thanksgiving. Grateful for having had the chance to help make a difference on issues I care about. Grateful to all my supporters in Minnesota and across the country who made that journey not just possible, but joyful. Grateful to everyone who has reached out to wish me well – and, more importantly, kept carrying forward the fights I was proud to lead as a Senator.

And, most of all, grateful to Franni, who continues to be a rock, and to the family and friends who have always been there for me in good times and in less-good times.

As we gather around the table this year, we have a lot to celebrate, including a whole bunch of thrilling Democratic victories. But we also have a whole lot to worry about when it comes to our country. For me, and for so many of you, politics has always been about the improvement of people’s lives, just like Paul Wellstone said. And there’s so much more work left to do. I still miss being in the fight every day, and while I’m certainly not running for anything, I hope that, in the next year, I’ll have the chance to help make a difference again.

For a lot of Americans, this Thanksgiving comes during a time of real struggle. Men and women serving abroad are eating their turkey off trays at bases a world away from their families. Out in California, many victims of the horrible wildfires have no home in which to gather. And for some families, there will be an empty seat at the table.

So I know this isn’t a happy holiday season for everyone. But regardless of whether this past year has brought you joy or pain, I hope you’ll be able to take a moment this Thanksgiving to tell the people around you that you love them and give thanks for the good things in life. Franni and I wish you all the best.

With an attitude of gratitude,

Al