Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is a time to put politics aside and be joyful for the things we have and the people we love.

Republicans and Democrats; blacks and whites; Jews, Christians, Muslims and Native Americans -- Thanksgiving is not bound to any religion or ethnicity. It is a time to foster friendship, break bread and try to appreciate our differences, rather than resent them.

With Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanzaa and Ramadan right around the corner, and the New Year's Day soon after that, this is a time for all of us to be hopeful about the future, as well.

This is the time to remember our troops stationed at home or abroad, wherever they might be in the world. This is the time to be thankful for the blessings we have and to understand the very fragile nature of the time all of us have together on this earth.

This is also a time to make sure our children know about this nation's founding fathers, and what Thanksgiving meant to them and to every American since then. That means ensuring they are taught these lessons not only at home, but also at school.