This is the time of year when we like to take a moment and identify the many things that we appreciate for making the daily journey more interesting and pleasurable. While there are certainly some omissions from this list, here are just a few things that we’d like to acknowledge as our thoughts turn to Thanksgiving and all that this annual holiday represents.

We’re thankful for comprehensive eye exams, new technology that enables eyecare delivery to underserved populations around the globe (and in the U.S.) and the growing understanding of how eye health ties into overall wellness.

Thank you also to the kind and considerate people in the optical community who have proven to be patient, forthcoming and accessible to novice reporters who ask too many (and occasionally inane) questions.

A big thank you to all of the charitable efforts and organizations in eyecare that work tirelessly through the year to ensure that those less fortunate among us have access to improved vision and better eye health. And thankfully, there are too many to name here.

As a reporter, we’re especially thankful for Google Alerts, Seeking Alpha and Twitter (in no specific order). A shout-out to Vision Expo East and West, the Essilor Bowl, and college football rivalries. We’re thankful, too, for progressive lenses, innovative frame designers, photochromics and contact lens R&D professionals.

Thank you, also, to the spirit of competition across every segment of the eyecare business, which keeps us in the news media busy and necessary. (Do I hear a few “thank yous” for VMAIL?)

We’re thankful, too, for friends, family and colleagues (old and new), who are always there in times of need to lend a hand or an ear in times of concern. To all of you, we wish a hearty, healthy, Happy Thanksgiving.