Thinking Of Thanks

There is a forgotten holiday between Halloween and Christmas.

At least here in Texas, Halloween is a big deal. And then the Halloween candy aisles in the grocery stores are replaced immediately by Christmas displays.

Hey! We’re missing something.

Thanksgiving is not just a time for roasting a turkey and watching football. Thanksgiving is a time to remember the founding of the American colonies and a time to appreciate what it means to be an American.

The first colonists came to America to pursue religious freedom. They encountered some indigenous people and (initially) learned to coexist. The first American Thanksgiving was probably a joint immigrant/Indian feast. Probably based on equality. The Europeans brought technology; the Indians brought ecology. The combination was a bigger harvest – Thanksgiving.

That was then. Now there are even more reasons to give thanks.

Agriculture has changed from being the biggest employer to being maybe two percent of employment – and American food production leads the world.

Religious freedom is enshrined in the first amendment to our constitution. The first!

Our country fought a civil war over civil rights of people considered slaves. Civil rights won.

Our country debated voting rights for women. Little New Zealand was the first to recognize woman’s suffrage; but the United States followed.

The United States participated in and prevailed in World War I and World War II. Unlike all previous successful combatants, the US did not occupy or colonize the losers. Indeed, the US invested in the redevelopment of the losers.

This great county gave me the opportunity to pursue a traditional housewife lifestyle, then a non-traditional high-tech career, and now an entrepreneurial career as a housecleaner. I don’t know of any other country that would have provided me the freedom to pursue all of the careers that I have pursued.

Saudi Arabia would not have let me drive. Or be alone in public without a male relative.

China would not have let me live in a city I was not born in; or to have more than one child.

India would not let me get a job beyond my caste.

Thanksgiving is uniquely American. I am thankful to live HERE!