Thursday, November 26, 2009

Giving Thanks

Someone once told me that Jews don't need a day called Thanksgiving because we give thanks every day for all the blessings we are given. I won't argue. So let me just add on some things I'm thankful for today in addition to the things I'm thankful for on each day.

I'm thankful to our government for deciding to commemorate a long ago feast held by the Indians and the Pilgrims so that this is an official day off from work. I'm thankful because otherwise there is no way that I would be sitting down to eat a meal with my sister and her family at 4:30 on a Thursday. I'm doubly thankful that my sister is doing the cooking, thus keeping me out of the mad crush of a supermarket in the days before Thanksgiving. I'm thankful that my sister gets to have the leftovers, my family eating Turkey if it's fresh and absolutely refusing to go near it, no matter how it's disguised, if it's left over. There simply aren't enough ways to keep saying how thankful I am that my mother will be there with us, presiding over dismantling that turkey, as she has for decades.

I'm thankful that when I got up this morning and took a nose count, all noses were present. There's more, so much more that I'm thankful for.

So is this a day of Thanksgiving? You betcha! And I hope that my readers, too, will have much to be thankful for today.

5 comments:

Lissa said...

Careful Prof, you're showing your oot gene. I know there are lots of people in NY who are also going to be sitting down to a meal but they don't all admit it.

I'm thankful too that my mil is doing the dinner this year, although I will miss the leftovers.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Debbie said...

I'll second the thanks for that official day off. No philosophy or religious reason but we don't have turkey or a big family roundup today. But we do always have a family activity planned and we do do eat a meal together.

Enjoy your day.

Lion of Zion said...

"someone once told me that Jews don't need a day called Thanksgiving because we give thanks every day for all the blessings we are given."

yeah, because the Jewish calendar doesn't have any days set aside for us to show we are thankful for national redemption, good harvests, etc.

Rita said...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!! Does that say it loudly enough? Won't get any flack from me if you're celebrating the day. Any time that families can get together is a time to give thanks, and I don't care who invented the day.

(Taking a small break before all my company arrives)

BrooklynWolf said...

Someone once told me that Jews don't need a day called Thanksgiving because we give thanks every day for all the blessings we are given.

And based on that, we don't need a day called Yom Kippur since we ask for forgiveness every day.

The Wolf