A Day of Thanksgiving

The night before Thanksgiving and the house is filled with anticipation.  The aroma of pumpkin pies, homemade breads, sweet potatoes, and squash floats through the rooms causing all inside to hunger for the feast foods.  All are engrossed with preparations for the coming day from the eldest to the youngest.  Laughter abounds and conversations flow with animation as families gather together this night.  Tomorrow the feast will be had and the memory of those who first enjoyed the bounties of the land and gave thanks for these gifts will be reflected upon as the participants share their own reasons for being thankful.

A day of thanksgiving.  A day of love.  A day of family.  A day of blessings.  A day the pilgrims celebrated after a winter of death and a summer of hope.  A day President Lincoln declared to be set aside in 1863 to be thankful during the rages and atrocities of a civil war.  A day President Roosevelt  and Congress set to be the 4th Thursday of November not just for giving thanks, but to lengthen the Christmas shopping season.  Although, we pay homage to the pilgrims for this day; the truth is President Lincoln is the real father of the holiday.  This day of thankfulness.

Yet, is it really the type of day Lincoln hoped for?  Or has it become a day of gorging, football, squabbling, and shopping?  To some it really is a day of thanksgiving.  Of sharing the blessings one has received through the year.  For others, it is a day of loneliness.  Of being lost.  Of being without.  To some, it is a day of family, but not of love.  It is a day of fighting, bickering, and hate.  To countless people, it is a day of football and gorging.  Of devouring the feast and enjoying a game.  To many, it is the day of anticipation.  Of rushing to the shopping centers and stores; finding a spot and standing in lines in order to get the best deals for Christmas shopping.

Thanksgiving has a multitude of meanings for the people of the United States.  It signifies so many different ideals and values. It fills the citizens with numerous images and desires.  I have just one request to all who read this:  Remember and help those who are lost, lonely, and desperate.  Think upon the words of Charles Dickens in "A Christmas Carol" concerning Ignorance and Want.  Do not foster hate upon the poor and helpless instead, open hearts and eyes to reality and remember President Lincoln.  Most importantly, Thanksgiving a day of thanks for the blessings and the challenges we receive every day.