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Universally, those of us, fortunate enough to have had good parents to teach us to be polite and say our ‘thank yous’ as appropriate, do so automatically. So why do we make that ONE day a year – Thanks Giving Day – so especial? Is it to show God gratitude for His blessings, or our good fortune? If so, what kind of blessings are we grateful for?
In my experience, my gratitude seems to be relative to my age. The older I get, the more I appreciate a day free of health concerns, while in my youth, once I became truly Americanized, I was grateful for all the materialistic aspects of life. Yet, as an objective observer I have been able to see how the more plentiful the material acquisitions are, the bigger the turkey at the center of a family dinner can be, with all the trimmings and such, only to cause indigestion the next day for some. Of course this does not negate the spirit of the truly fortunate ones, those who have extended families to be thankful for.
The more I write this, the more I wonder about the meaning the rich and powerful attach to Thanks Giving Day, among politicians, in particular. Such a disconnect in my mind here, when the sad reality shows that some of them can be thankful for all the wrong aspects of life, such as being able to defy the law in order to protect their acquisitions, at the expense of the poor and less powerful, concept that seems to perpetuate the dark side of history around this particular holiday.
Marcela Gaumer
Colorado Springs
Editor’s note: Letters to the editor have not been edited nor fact-checked.