A lot to be thankful for

Yesterday, family members in the US celebrated Thanksgiving, an occasion to be thankful for every blessing that comes their way and a chance to be with family since it’s the only national holiday in the US that gives them a long weekend.

It is one tradition that we Filipinos have not embraced which is quite strange since we adopt just about all occasions there are in the world. Just look at our nation’s calendar and you will see lots of holidays, not counting the locally declared holidays for patron saints and festivals.

Canada also celebrates Thanksgiving but it falls every second Monday of October while that in US is always on the fourth Thursday of November.

Thanksgiving Day in the US though has evolved from what it was before, a day to be thankful for a good harvest and blessings in the past year. Today though, it is more synonymous to big sales, ball games and family reunions.

Historically, they traced the day of thanksgiving to the first immigrants of the US, the English people who brought with them their tradition of Days of Fasting and Days of Thanksgiving.

Perhaps our own version can be the Season of Lent when we celebrate it with three days of fasting and a bountiful feast come Easter Sunday.

Both the US and Canada celebrated several thanksgiving days depending on which state you are in and it wasn’t until 1041 through a presidential and a congressional act did the US declared Thanksgiving Day on the fourth Thursday of November while in Canada, their parliament officially declared the second Monday of October as their own day of thanks.

I was watching the History channel where they discussed the origins and other facts about Thanksgiving and one interesting fact I learned was more than 46 million turkeys are consumed on Thanksgiving or a fifth of the US annual consumption of their national bird. That’s a lot of turkeys roasted on their special day.

Whether we celebrate that occasion or not, I think it’s nice to be reflective at this time especially with Christmas just around the corner, and be thankful for the little blessings we have in the past year. Be thankful for the breath of life, be thankful for the food and shelter we have and be thankful for the family around us.

I personally have a lot to be thankful for, for things now and for things in the past. I am always thankful for the gift of my late wife, Nene, who gifted me with 11 children, 22 grandchildren, and five great grandchildren.

I am blessed too by remaining siblings, two of whom – Bert and Oscar – are now back here which gives us a chance to be together in our golden years. A sister, Yoly, still lives in San Diego, California but comes home often now that she is retired.

I am also grateful to have so many friends, my church family in the Neo Cathecumenate movement, my Lions colleagues, my media friends and people whom I’ve met through the years and who in one way or another have touched my life.

We may not be celebrating Thanksgiving as an official holiday, but that certainly should not stop us from imbibing this tradition to give thanks to our Lord for everything. In fact, just being here is more than enough reason to make thanksgiving a daily occasion to celebrate life.*

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