Give Thanks

Today in my country is the Thanksgiving holiday. Thanksgiving was established by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, when our nation was in a civil war. The day was established to be on the fourth Thursday in the month of November every year. The purpose of the day is to gather with family and friends, to have a feast together, and to pause and reflect on all that we have, to be thankful for all the blessings we have been given. The feast of Thanksgiving is to remember the feast in the 1600s with the native people in this land and the English settlers in this new land known as America.

I have to say, this is my least favorite holiday. Do not misunderstand me, there are things that I like about this holiday.
I love the time to gather with friends and family and to reflect on everything I am thankful for. I love watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. I love watching the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving special. It is not Thanksgiving without Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang.

 

However, there are some traditions about Thanksgiving Day that I do not care for. American football for one. Enjoying sports is not in my nature. I watch the Olympics when they occur, yet I do not care for any other sports.

Another tradition I do not care for is shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. This day is known as Black Friday, meaning that it is one of the biggest shopping days for retailers. Personally I think it is called Black Friday because of the behavior exhibited that day. People push and shove one another just to save some money on their purchases. Two years ago, a security guard at a retail store was trampled to death by people entering the store to do their shopping.

 

It used to be that people would camp out in tents at the stores; they used to open at 5am on Friday morning, and then they opened at midnight, 12am Friday morning. Now the practice has seeped into Thanksgiving Day. Some retail stores are opening at 5pm today. If people are out shopping, the employees at the stores cannot spend holiday time with their family.

 

The other thing I do not care for is the traditional Thanksgiving feast. Usually the meal has turkey as the entrée, followed by side dishes such as green beans, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, dressing, stuffing, cranberry sauce, bread, rolls, and then followed by desserts such as pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and apple pie. One thing that is not generally know about me-yet anyone in my family can tell you-I am a very picky eater. I like two or three of the foods I just mentioned. I do not like most of the foods in the traditional Thanksgiving feast.

 

 

I mentioned this fact the other day while at work. One co-worker remarked that they never have the traditional Thanksgiving feast, like the one I just described. Every year they have foods from other nations, such as Italy or Greece. This year they are having a feast of Mexican foods. I complimented her on her brave culinary choices. Yet, at the same time, another co-worker looked at her in total astonishment. She thought having a meal on Thanksgiving that was not the traditional Thanksgiving feast was sacrilegious, almost as thought it made her un-American.

It does not matter what you eat on Thanksgiving Day. It does not matter if you gather with friends and family for a mammoth feast. It doesn’t matter if you watch football, or the parade on television. There are many ways to celebrate the holiday. The point of the holiday is to pause and reflect, to think about all of your blessings, to be thankful for what you have and what you have been given.

This year, as every year, I am thankful for friends and family. I am thankful for the time I get to spend with them. I am thankful my family is filled with very good cooks, who prepare an exquisite Thanksgiving feast for us to enjoy. I am thankful for my two kittens who fill my home with laughter and light and love. I am thankful to have a new publishing business. I am thankful to have a job. I am thankful to have a car that can take me to my job. I am thankful I have a roof over my head. I am thankful I have food to eat and Diet Coke to drink. I am thankful to have a new computer. I am thankful to have this blog for my means of expression. I am thankful to you for reading my words on this blog. I am thankful to have online friends from around the world. I am thankful for everything I have been given, and everything I have not.

Sometime this holiday season, pause for a moment. Think about all of your blessings, all you have been given, everything you are thankful for. Give thanks.

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