I Love You. Please Stay Home.

I started to write a letter this morning. It went like this:

Dear Family,

I love you. I'd love to have you here for the holidays. So the two words I'm going to say now are the hardest words I can ever remember saying:

Stay home.

I stared at those words on the paper. What a strange time this is, I thought. Everything we've always taken for granted has been swept away. Our world has been turned upside down.

So I guess it's fitting that this is how we're going to celebrate Thanksgiving. We're going to show how much we love each other by staying away.

No hurrying to the door and welcoming in the ones we love with hugs. No sitting around the table, bowing our heads and saying grace. No jokes and bickering over the last slice of pie, no relaxing together or watching football or playing games.

It breaks my heart to say it, but still: stay home.

I'm not alone, of course. Right now, all across the country and the world, people are saying the same words to their loved ones. They're facing the hard truth that, after so many months of sacrifice, we need to give up our holidays as well.

I know we've been dealing with this a long time, and we're tired. We're sick of staying away from the ones we love. We long to hold grandchildren, hug our loved ones and laugh with friends. We want to do the things we do every year during the holidays. How can that be dangerous? We're in our own homes, with our friends and family!

But then I ask, how would I feel if afterwards, one of us got sick? Or passed it on? Is anything, anything worth that risk?

I love you. And I'm going to show my love by not taking the slightest risk with your health.

I hold that note in my hand and I close my eyes for a moment. I picture your dear faces. And behind you I see other people: my neighbors, people in my town, folks I don't even know. I see, too, a crowd of exhausted nurses and doctors.

For all of us who will celebrate Thanksgiving in a quiet house, sitting at a table with empty chairs, look at it this way: we are given the chance to show our loved ones how important they are to us by making this sacrifice to keep them safe.

After all, what really matters has never been the food, or the football, or all those traditions we've always taken for granted. Over the years I think we've let 'Thanksgiving' be just a word, mixed in with turkey and pie. We talk about being grateful, and bow our heads, perhaps, before we dig in.

But this year, with everything changed, it's thrown our blessings and responsibility into the sharp light of choice. If Thanksgiving means being grateful for our blessings, it also means treating them as precious and sacred.

We don't have to be martyrs about it, either. We'll make a good meal, smaller and simpler, perhaps, but still special. We'll call or spend time together on Zoom, and we'll laugh and talk and share memories. Maybe we'll watch a movie or play a game online. We'll do what we can to make this Thanksgiving and the other holidays ahead ones we'll remember fondly in the years to come.

And when we bow our heads in thanks, this year we have more than ever to be grateful for.

Are our friends and family are alive and healthy this Thanksgiving? Let's take a moment to send our thoughts to the families of the 250,000 Americans who have died, and the many more who are still sick and broken.

Let's say a prayer for the millions who've lost their livelihood these past months, and especially for those who are wondering where they'll sleep tonight.

And lastly, let's pray for the strength to stay strong and keep walking this long road, making the hard choices that can keep our families and our communities safe.

Our holidays ahead will be quiet, but perhaps we can use that quiet to listen to the lessons this hard time can teach us.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving, and stay safe.