penandpatience

WRITERS WORDS: “If you made a list of all the things you could be grateful for the list would undoubtedly be longer than your misfortunes.” –Catherine Pulsifer

NOVEMBER 2017 MONTHLY MUSING

THANKSGIVING –GIVINGTHANKS!

     Thanksgiving, the holiday that falls between Halloween and Christmas, is, in my opinion not what it used to be. Commercial marketing goes all out stocking shelves for Halloween with many folks spending millions of dollars annually in honor of fright night. Although Thanksgiving décor is also displayed, it’s been viewed as a forerunner to Christmas festivities with holiday items for sale in stores before the Northeast’s colored leaves drop to the ground. Thanksgiving dinner dishes linger in the kitchen while folks run to the mall for that first door-buster of the season and others camping out before sunrise on “Black Friday”—bah Humbug!

So what is the true meaning of Thanksgiving? I believe it’s a special time to be thankful for what we have and a reminder to be grateful for the people, friends and family we have in our lives. It’s a time for transforming bountiful harvests into Thanksgiving feasts, and eating pumpkin pie before napping or watching football (No, I’m not a fan) with family and guests. It’s a time of inclusion, sharing our largesse with those less fortunate and setting traditions that future generations might memorialize.

     An informational Excerpt: “Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated in Canada, the United States, some of the Caribbean islands, and Liberia. It began as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States, and around the same part of the year in other places. Although Thanksgiving has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, it has long been celebrated as a secular holiday as well.” (Meaning of Thanksgiving-Bing.com)

This year with our country in unprecedented turmoil with hurricanes, fires and terrorist activities causing devastating losses to our populaces, it’s especially important to be grateful for the opportunity to give thanks to family, friends and emergency responders this holiday season.

This Thanksgiving I am thankful for:

My youngest daughter’s survival so far from breast cancer;

My sister’s recent visit from Arizona and a good time spent together;

Family and friends located in Florida unharmed by Hurricane Harvey;

Good eyesight allowing me to read and write my Musings;

Support from many readers and followers who have faithfully read my Monthly Musings since 2012;

Publication of stories/essay in 2017;

Our Armed Forces and Veterans who’ve kept the United States free and safe for generations;

My birth in the U.S.A. – the greatest country in the world!

Share with me on the Comments Page:  What are you thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day, 2017?

Dear Readers/Writers: I share with you a Safety Slogan from a Safety First newsletter I wrote for a former employer years ago:

S.A.F.E. = SAFETY AWARENESS FIRST EVERYDAY.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!