Today is Thanksgiving in the USA. This is a holiday where we Americans celebrate all that we are thankful for, and I don't mean that we are the richest country on Earth or that we own too much "stuff." I mean we stop and thank God (or each other, or whomever) for the serious stuff: our loved ones, our health, our happiness. It all harkens back to a dinner in 1621, when the heretofore starving Pilgrims had a simple "feast" to thank God for surviving the winter. Over the centuries this turned into a national day of Thanks, with all the traditions of turkey and pumpkin pie somehow getting included. Personally, my family has a tradition that I would like to tell you about. It started a few years ago, right around the time of 9-11. My sister Jo Anne suggested that we take some of our extra food and share it with our local fire-fighters or police officers on Thanksgiving Day. After all, these heroes don't get that day off like most of the rest of us do. So every year for the past five years I have made extra cookies or pumpkin pie and brought them to our local establishments. I have also started doing this on Christmas Day, too. If you like this idea, I urge you to try it. The smiles I get every time I show up with free food for the fire station or police station is payment enough for an extra few hours in the kitchen.
So as I spend my day with my family in my hometown of St. Louis, Missouri I would like to wish everyone reading this a Happy Thanksgiving. Never take anything for granted, and be humble and thankful for all that you receive. Remember: but for the grace of God.....
And here is the original Norman Rockwell print that served as the basis for the illustration by Carlos Pacheco shown above.
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