Today was Mike's favorite holiday because it was all about tradition and food, and it wasn't all about being a consumer.

Janet and I talked about that this morning. I'm working the late cops shift here at the paper, but Janet wanted to spend at least part of Thanksgiving with us. So she arrived last night and we talked late into the night, as we usually do when we get together. Mike used to leave us to our gabbing and go to bed.

Mike was always all about the food, and he loved traditional Thanksgiving food. What he really loved was my traditional Thanksgiving food. It had to be bread stuffing. And there had to be both apple and chocolate cream pies for dessert. There had to be a ton of gravy because he just poured it on until the entire plate was swimming in it. I had to make my cranberry bread so he could slather my apple butter onto it. I couldn't deviate from the norm because Thanksgiving was a day for tradition, whether I cooked on Thursday or Friday.

We always went around the table and talked about what we were thankful for, and there was always laughter.

I didn't know last year that it would be my last Thanksgiving with Mike, although if I had been honest with myself I would have seen it. He was weak, thin and in pain, even though none of the tests the doctors performed came back positive for cancer.

But he was thankful for friends and family and for every day he was alive. I was thankful for his life, too. I still am. I'm thankful for Janet and her devotion to our advocacy and education efforts on lifeomike.org. I'm thankful for Danny and what a good man he has become, and for Jennifer and the kids -- for all my family and friends, really.

Walking downtown today, I was wished a happy Thanksgiving by a group of homeless men. I smiled back and wished them the same, then said a prayer that they will be fed, warm and safe tonight.

We can choose to think about all the negatives on Thanksgiving or we can count the blessings we do have. I have a home, a job, my health and people who care about me. You can't ask for more than that.