Happy Thanksgiving!

I know we take this Holiday for granted. I rarely did because it was very special to me. It screamed of family, connections, home and hearth, warmth and comfort. It was a day of good spirits and fabulous food. It was an indoor holiday that focused on togetherness and security. Snugness.

When sated with food there were always the quiet times of sitting in a recliner and watching a football game. The roar of the crowd sounded over the TV’s speaker. Family members oohed and aahed over the plays both made and missed. Attention was on the game and relaxing.  For me the game didn't matter but the focus on the game by others provided me the ‘space’ to escape, relax, even catch a nap no one would notice.  Sports are not my ‘thing’.

In other cultures around the world many do not have a holiday like our Thanksgiving. Some do, of course, taking a timeout in busy lives to give show thanks and gratitude for all the good things we have in life. Blessings they are often termed, blessings in our lives that we did not provide ourselves but were given by others or a higher power. Dare we say God in these days? I will. But my definition of God may be unlike yours and anyone else’s.

Gratitude. Truly feeling gifted by some external power for good in my life. Abundant food. Secure housing. Loved ones near and far. Reliable transportation. A sense of smell and taste to better appreciate the food available. Interesting and challenging culture. People who are willing to share their time and ideas to improve the common good. Doctors and nurses who truly know their medical stuff and deliver time after time. School teachers who care about their students and there future. Churches who reach out the communities beyond their walls and borders to make a difference in the lives of others.

Thanksgiving is more than celebrating financial success. It is in fact much different than that! Thanksgiving is knowing the small details in life matter and we get it, and can use those details to enhance lives of other people. Because we want to. Because we sense we need to.

Thanksgiving is about forgetting the self in favor of other people. Thanksgiving is knowing we are grateful for the lives we have. And that we have the strength and means to help others who have much less.

I could go on but I won’t. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. For good reason. But also it is good to cut to the chase and let everyone have more time to give their thanks. So from all of us here, to all of you wherever you are, Happy Thanksgiving!  Enjoy each other. Enjoy the peace and security. May it last all year round.

November 27, 2014