This year has been out of the ordinary. In fact, if these last few years are any indication, there is no ordinary any more.
One thing I found this year was that proclaimed holidays and “Day of . . .” type of proclamations have almost become overwhelming. There was an online “Mother and Daughter” day, and then a “Father and Son” day. Cats get special billing in holidays.
It seems anyone can proclaim a “holiday” (holy day). For those of you into semantics and word meanings – “holy” is all about “completely other” or “set apart” or “not like anything else”.
I guess we can all set our own days of special focus. And we do. Birthdays tend to get high billing in this regard. Graduations from various levels of academic study rank right up there. Yearly wedding anniversaries jockey for position.
Local and national governments also get into the act. There are ;evels of priority here as well. There can be statutory federal holidays – some with provincial approval and some not. Truth and Reconciliation day is not recognized in all provinces while still being federally initiated. On the other hand, Thanksgiving has been proclaimed across the board.
My Thanksgiving this year saw two meals celebrated. One meal was a local family gathering with us as guests (we’ve been like family to them for years, so maybe guest is not quite the right word). We prayed and gave thanks. We ate and discussed and even argued. All good!!
The other meal was at a friends’ house as well. There the meal was laid out carefully and a “ritual” of giving thanks was entered into. This ceremony was meaningful and the talk that followed was gracious. All good!
I wonder how you spent your Thanksgiving “holiday”? Where do you derive your thankfulness from?
– From the air we breathe? I’m not six feet under, nor are my ashes sitting in an urn somewhere. I’m alive.
– From the friends and family we may have? Here I pause to note the epidemic of loneliness in our country. I trust that you have friends that eat with you, talk to you, drop in on occasion, and perhaps even fulfil that phrase – “we are better together”.
– From more than just surviving? I like to think that we can survive even in times of ill will, earth shattering weather, or even the grief of war, death, and so many situations where we are divorced from our usual surroundings. But survival can take a step higher – as we re-title our day to one of thankfulness.
And let me add one last thankfulness. God has granted me time on this earth with so many of you. As I live and breathe on this planet, I’m thankful for you, my readers.
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