In our complicated, angry, violent world, it’s sometimes hard to find reasons to be thankful.
But each year on the last Thursday in November, we take time to do just that.
For those of us in the U.S., Thanksgiving can be traced back to a celebration at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621.
The 1621 Plymouth feast and thanksgiving was prompted by a good harvest. Pilgrims and Puritans who began emigrating from England in the 1620s and 1630s carried the tradition of Days of Fasting and Days of Thanksgiving with them to New England.
Several days of Thanksgiving were held in early New England history that have been identified as the “First Thanksgiving.”
As President of the United States, George Washington proclaimed the first nationwide thanksgiving celebration in America marking Nov. 26, 1789, “as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God.”
From that year forward, Americans annually have joined with family and friends on Thanksgiving to share in a feast of turkey, potatoes and cranberries. Every family’s favorite aunt brings the green bean casserole and there’s always sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie.
Despite individual spiritual or religious beliefs, each of us have something to be thankful for. It may be that new job, improved health or even a new love.
It may be something more simple, like having the day off.
For some, it may be just having a meal and somewhere to spend the day with others.
As a community, we have much to be thankful for — community leaders who make tough decisions, social services officials who care for our poor, great teachers who work with our children and all our police and firefighters who risk their lives to keep us safe.
As the family gathers, share your thanks with each other. Think about what you can do to make the world a better, more peaceful place.
And whatever you are thankful for, enjoy your Thanksgiving Day.
Remember, too, to think about your blessings on Friday and every other day.
