In every situation, there are reasons to give thanks
Holidays are so important to help ground us in the things that are enduring. In today's American culture which is so focused on the present, remembering the history of Thanksgiving gives us all an important reminder that can transcend the urgency of the moment we live in which seems to crowd our busy lives and overloaded senses.
Despite some of the revisionist history surrounding the first Thanksgiving, there is one thing that seems indisputable and well-documented. That first day of Thanksgiving came after many pilgrims had died after a rough and brutal winter. Our best records indicate Forty-five of the 102 pilgrims on the Mayflower perished during their first winter over 400 years ago. Nearly half of the first wave of immigrants wiped out in the first year.
Despite that grim statistic, the resolve of the remaining pilgrims is something that can inspire us generations later. While it seems likely that the celebration may have been bittersweet for some who had lost close friends, and in some cases beloved family members, they made a conscious decision to dwell not on their great misfortunes, but instead to dwell on the great blessing they had.
Let us do likewise. We all need to embrace that same resolve and hopeful orientation. No matter what difficulties we have encountered, no matter what challenges still lie ahead, today is a day to sit back and appreciate all that we do have, and look at life through that lens of appreciation and thankfulness.
