I have long pitied Thanksgiving. It seems to me to be the Rodney Dangerfield of holidays.
It gets no respect.
It was a slow process at first. But slowly and surely, Christmas started to follow Halloween. Now, it even proceeds that in some cases.
George Washington declared November 26, 1789, as a "day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favours of Almighty God". The fourth Thursday in November was later fixed by Abraham Lincoln as the official day for Thanksgiving across the United States. The origins and basis of the holiday are somewhat disputed, but many will include the original settlers to America, the Pilgrims, as the founders. They gave thanks for a great harvest after a somewhat rocky start in the New World.
No matter the origins, when it comes to celebrating a holiday, Thanksgiving is just different.
But why?
It isn't a gift-giving holiday like Easter or Christmas or Hanukkah. It isn't a religious holiday, either. So there is no commercialism to aggravate those that that wish we would remember the Christ in Christmas and no crosses or nativity scenes to draw the ire of the atheists. It doesn't specify one segment of society over another (does anyone but me ever wonder why the world closes for the observation of Christmas Eve and Christmas day for the Christian holiday but not one day of the eight for Hanukkah or for Yom Kippur for our Jewish counterparts?) nor does it have any really stringent "musts" as far as the propriety of celebration go. Almost anything goes in that department. We used to have Thanksgiving dinner in a hotel room at the Tom Penny Inn before walking to Cowboy Stadium and watching football. The only real point was that we were together as a family.
It does not require anything more than simply stopping for one day to reflect on our blessings and be thankful for them. No matter whether or not you believe in God or any other Higher Power you can still be thankful - for your health; for having employment; for those you love; for the ability to smell the flowers, hear the music of your children's laughter, see the sunshine reflecting off water, feel the softness of your loved one's kiss and taste the sweetness of lovingly prepared food.
It should be single-most favored holiday across the board. It doesn't have any elements that disagree with anyone!
So why does it get so short changed? People can't wait to clear the dishes on Thursday and pull out the Christmas decorations. Some start that night. Black Friday, the massive shopping day for Christmas is starting to encroach on Thursday. Many stores were open Thursday evening, others opening at Midnight - shifting the focus of the true meaning of the day to getting ready for that night's adventure. I heard people talking about having to go the grocery store and shop for the big meal, having to cook so many pies and side dishes, having to get up early because they had to drive a distance to see their family.
I'd like to borrow my cousin's blog theme and remind people you don't HAVE to, you GET TO. You may need to go to the grocery store because you get to prepare food for those you love. You may need to get on the road early because you get to spend the day with your family. Reminding us that not everyone is so blessed.
Of course, we should be thankful every day, and Christmas should live in our hearts year 'round, but we aren't always. There shouldn't need to be a reminder by setting aside a day. But the day is there and I'd like to embrace it. I know a lot of people on Facebook listed one thing every day they were thankful for, up until yesterday. I'm not so public about things like that but I did give it some thought. I have been truly blessed and I know it. I try to say a prayer of thanks every day.
Can I change things? No. I'm not going to get Wal-mart to not play Christmas music and set up trees before Halloween. Christmas is a huge profit generator for the retail industry and the sooner they can get consumers to think about it the more they may sell - maybe not, but it is worth the gamble to the big players. All I can control are my actions and reactions.
And possibly give some food for thought for you.
Food that doesn't have to peeled, chopped, mixed, baked, roasted or served.
Are you giving the day of Thanksgiving all it deserves?
