These days, a lot of people seem to think of Thanksgiving is nothing but a warm-up for Christmas.  The commercials for all the new gift ideas have started already, and one local radio station is even playing Christmas music round the clock.  Don’t get me wrong, Christmas is great; but Thanksgiving is a different holiday.

The stories we have of the first Thanksgiving are largely exaggerated, but we do know that at some point, the Pilgrims and their Pokanoket allies gathered and had a feast to celebrate their new alliance.  This was a difficult time for both of them, as the Pokanokets had just been ravaged by a plague and the Pilgrims had lost most of their friends and shipmates during the hellish ordeal of reaching America and surviving their first year here.  Still, they found something to celebrate.

Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday while the Civil War was raging.  It was a hard time for all Americans, but Lincoln realized that the only way we could survive was by remembering the good things we still had.  During the toughest of times, our forefathers always found something for which to give thanks.

So why, on a day set aside for giving thanks, do we think only about eating and about the presents we will receive in a month’s time?  Don’t we have enough material possessions already?  This Thanksgiving, let’s all try to remember the real meaning of the holiday.  Lets savor the time we spend with our families and, rather than just gorging ourselves, let’s savor each bite of Thanksgiving dinner and remember the hard work that went into making it.  Once we realize how much we really have to give thanks for, we will be able to enter into the next holiday season with joyful hearts, ready to give rather than just receive.

–Kevin Jones