Today was my last day of work before vacation, and I found myself wishing everyone “Happy Thanksgiving!”

It got me thinking about the greetings we offer each other.  Does saying “Have a happy thanksgiving!” make it so?  Does someone saying to me “Drive safely on your trip to Florida” bestow a protective blessing to keep us from accident on 95 traveling.

When I was a teenager I went through a phase (maybe you did too) when I thought it was important to answer honestly the question “How are you?”.  Rather than saying “Fine”, I would tell them, “Actually, I’m in a horrible mood” or “I’m having a terrible day”.  Most of my adolescent days were on the dark end of the emotional spectrum.

I don’t remember the responses, but I, thankfully, grew out of that phase, and adopted the usual custom of saying “I’m fine, and how are you?”

And, today, with every good wish for a happy thanksgiving and a safe journey, I felt like the possibility of a great vacation was ever closer.

Have a great weekend, everyone!