Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Always thanks


As we in the Wood River Valley wait for more snow, despair hangs over the homes of tens of thousands of American families this Thanksgiving holiday. They include families devastated by killer storms in the Southeast, breadwinners laid off by industry cutbacks, Katrina victims still adrift in makeshift homes, and families of GIs in Iraq clinging to hope they don't hear the worst.

But in a tradition begun 385 years ago by Pilgrim settlers who knew the ordeal of real privation, Americans set aside cares on Thanksgiving to count their blessings and give thanks for the good in their lives, with prayer, festive reunions, and bountiful holiday meals.

And even those with seemingly little to celebrate find moments of thankfulness in this tradition due to the generosity of those who share their bounty with gifts of money and food. There are many ways to spread thankfulness beyond the Thanksgiving feast at home. Those who do will find great joy in making donations through a church, synagogue or food bank to provide festive, carefree hours of good food for those whose needs may surpass their incomes.

Collectively, American families also can give thanks that we're a nation of people who are generally optimistic, rather than pessimistic, and resilient, rather than defeatist, when faced with trying and painful events and challenges.

Time has passed since the first Thanksgiving, and the landscape has changed. Yet, Thanksgiving still honors, embraces and blesses the same do-or-die spirit that fueled the survival instincts of the Pilgrims during those first harsh winters in their new homeland.




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