A Critical Time for Sincere Thanks

Around this time last year, I wrote an article about all the things I was grateful for to celebrate Thanksgiving. At the time, I saw how much of this country was overwhelmed with fear and division and unfortunately, those problems have only gotten worse since then. Tensions today are higher than at any time I can remember in my life, and it is all too easy to get lost in the 24-hour news cycle and constant flow of information on social media.

In times like these, I believe it is more important than ever to take a step back and focus on the things we have that make our lives worth living, from the people immediately around us to those who wake up every day to try and make the world a better place. I hope that after you have finished this piece, you will join me and reflect on the people and things in your life that make you happy.

For me, it starts with my family. I wondered for a long time if I would ever get married and it wasn’t until I turned 40 that I met the love of my life, Chynna. We are now married and have two beautiful children together. I couldn’t do what I do without their support, along with the support of my mom who raised me and gave me the skills I needed to succeed. Just sitting at home with my family on the couch, I often feel like I must be the luckiest man in the world. I beat the negative odds that are placed on young Black men raised by a single mom in a working-class family.

I’m also grateful for the people fighting every day to build a better world for my children. 2025 has been a tumultuous period not just for our state or our country, but the entire world. It often feels like the people in power making decisions no longer have any regard for the people those decisions will hurt. That is most true when it comes to our incredible public servants – everyone from scientific researchers to forest rangers.

These people have dedicated their lives to this country and its success, but many of them have been under unprecedented attack lately. Despite constant changes in expectations, firings and threats, they still go to work every day to support our veterans, our farmers, our seniors and our most vulnerable citizens. Many of the basic services we have today are only possible because of them, and I don’t think we acknowledge that enough.

As our federal government continues to cut itself to the bone and distance itself more and more from the people it is meant to serve, I want to say thank you to the people and organizations who are stepping up to fill in the gaps. That includes city leaders who are expanding municipal services, as well as nonprofit organizations that support affordable housing, keeping our environment clean and helping provide access to healthy food. At a time when the rhetoric from the top is splitting us apart, I see how much we can accomplish when we remember our common humanity which transcends race, class and national boundaries.

Modern politics has revealed that there is a massive chasm between us and our leaders and representatives and how we perceive the world. I choose to believe in a world where the majority of people are just trying to do a little good, whether it’s for their community, their state or just the people living in their own home. I believe that, fundamentally, people are good and doing their best. When I see people volunteer for a food drive, protest against inhumane incarceration or make a meal for the unhoused community, I see the love that we are all capable of.

One of the first steps in dismantling and rejecting hate is expressing hope and gratitude. If you turn on cable news or scroll through social media for five minutes, odds are you’re going to run into cherry-picked stories about crime or terrorism or see a panel whining about how American culture is changing, which it always has and always will.

Some outlets profit on your outrage, but we don’t have to let them. This holiday season, the best thing we can do is step away and deepen our relationships with our family, our friends and our community. When you surround yourself with love, it’s so much harder to hate.

Tharon Johnson can be seen Sunday mornings on The Georgia Gang on Fox 5 Atlanta.