Over the weekend we went to Los Angeles to see the taping of a special for CNN called "Heroes." It will air Thanksgiving night at 9 p.m.
Watch it. Or, if you're like busy on Thanksgiving night, tape it or DVD-R it or TIVo it for later.
It's been a rough couple of months. We've all been worried about the economy, the war, the environment, you name it. It's all bad. (Well, except for the election...But even there, there's the worry: How many burdens can you heap on the shoulders of one skinny little Hawaiian?)
The "Heroes" Show will make you feel better. It profiles 10 ordinary people who have, on a whim or a dream or religious grace, decided to do something to make something better. After the show, I was privileged to meet one of the honorees, Yohannes Gebregeorgis, a quiet, dignified gentleman who fled Ethiopia in the early 80s, made a life for himself as a librarian in San Francisco's beautiful main library, then returned to his country six years ago with a mission: to bring the gift of reading to rural children. He is a lovely man.
The other stories were no less affecting. During the taping, I sat next to a young woman who kept saying, "this one should win." "No, that one." At the end of the show, a hero of the year was announced, the votes solicited by CNN through an on-line poll. The winner had the wisdom to note that all those featured during the evening deserved the honor -- and the extra stipend that came with the award.
The next day, I watched a talk show panel discuss how bad things were in the economy, with Tom "The World is Flat" Friedman even suggesting that maybe we should consider moving up the Inaugural because, possibly, Jan. 20 would be too late to dig us out of the deepening hole. No, Tom. That's a Constitutional no-no. I was still under the "Heroes" aura, and the discussion seemed surreal.
In the Shock Doctrine , Naomi Klein argues that big events provide cover for evil governments and corporations to have their way. In the afterglow of "Heroes," I had a thought: maybe this particular trial will yield a different outcome. Maybe this holiday season, for example, consumer excess will (must?) give way to the things that matter -- friends, family, philanthropy. Watch "Heroes." It will put you in a holiday frame of mind.