photo by: Journal-World Photo Illustration

Lawrence Journal-World Editorial

Pass the potatoes, and leave the worry, please. On this Thanksgiving, you are doing just fine if you accomplish nothing more than that.

It has been a stressful year, at best, and a tragic one, at worst, for many people across the nation and the world. Today, there is still plenty to worry about, but, hopefully, there also is a table full of food and family and friends surrounding it.

Our advice, eat the food and bury the worry, at least for a day. (If there are leftovers tomorrow, you might try it for two days.)

It would be counterproductive to spend too much time listing the things that are producing worry: vaccinations (get one, please); democracy (support it, please); and national divisions that are becoming truly unhealthy (heal them, please), among others. So, give yourself permission to not think about any of it today. A day without worry is a gift worthy of thanks.

Surely, the day will spark other things worthy of your thanks. Hopefully, some of those will be sitting around your table, and even if that table is not as full as you would wish, know that you are never truly alone. We all have a spirit inside of us. Be sure to feed it today, too, and if you are among the fortunate who are able, try to help feed another as well.

If you are reading this page today, you certainly deserve thanks from us, the Lawrence Journal-World. We continue to be thankful for the opportunity to serve so many residents in Lawrence, Douglas County and beyond. Between our print edition and our LJWorld.com website we serve around 25,000 people on most days. In addition, we serve several hundred advertisers each month.

If you are in either of those groups, truly, thank you. Please know that your support helps employ 10 journalists — with another on the way — more than a dozen employees in advertising, circulation, accounting and other departments, and approximately 35 independent newspaper carriers who are up before the sun rises working to get your newspaper to your home or business.

While this past year has been challenging for us, as it has been for so many, it has been very gratifying to be reminded of how important local news is in the lives of area residents. During the height of the pandemic, we received so many thank-yous for the work that our staff was doing to help keep the public informed about really important items. That gratitude meant a lot, and please know that we will continue to work hard to serve the community in the future.

As for our wish for all of you, it is that you don’t have to work too hard today. Hopefully you can retire from worry for at least a day. If you feel like you are faltering, try uttering the phrase “more potatoes, please.” With that, your only worry should be whether the gravy will soon follow.

Happy Thanksgiving.