THANKSGIVING IS A HORRIBLE HOLIDAY…AND IS EXACTLY WHAT WE NEED RIGHT NOW.

The American myth of Thanksgiving can be summed up like this: Pilgrims fled religious persecution from the English crown and landed in the new world unprepared AF. The local people took pity on them and helped the pilgrims survive their first winter. And as a reward for being good neighbors, the locals were subjected to deadly diseases, had their land stolen, had their children stolen, and those who were left were forced to live on land nobody else wanted.

Now we conveniently forget the consequences of that first “Thanksgiving.” Instead we celebrate each November with glutinous amounts of food, unbuttoning our jeans as we melt into the couch and watch an American football game. We then prepare ourselves for the epically embarrassing display of unrestrained consumption as we worship on the altar of Capitalism. Every year, someone dies during the scramble for the latest flat-screen TV or MUST HAVE “my kid will kill me if I don’t get this” toy. PEOPLE DIE SHOPPING!

As you can probably detect, I’m not a fan of this American disaster of a holiday. So, why do I think it is exactly what we need right now?

I would point us to the name of the holiday: THANKSGIVING. When was the last time you sat down and truly considered the blessing in your life? When you expressed deeply felt gratitude for the abundance available to you?

“What are you smoking? 2020 has been a dumpster fire. What could I possibly be grateful for?” you might be asking.

Well, if you’re reading this article I know several things about you:

1. You are alive (unless you’re a bot. If you’re a bot, please go away)
2. Your vision is good enough to read a device screen
3. Your cognitive abilities allow you to read
4. You have access to the internet in some capacity
5. You have access to a device that allows you to access the internet in some capacity
6. You have the time to access a device that allows you to access the internet

I could go on but you get the picture. You have a great deal of privilege that others do not. You are alive, you have your sight, your cognition allows you to read, you have a level of affluence that gives you access to what many would consider luxury items. (Yes, I believe that our new world makes access to broadband internet necessary in regard to equity concerns but that is a different blog post).

I’d say all of the above are things to be deeply grateful for. We take so much for granted in our lives. Take a moment to consider: Do you have a roof over your head? Do you have shoes that keep the cold and water out? Do you have food security? Do you have a job? Is your home a safe space? Are you free from addiction?

We’ve lost a great deal in 2020. Many lost freedom of movement. Many lost their unexamined sense of safety from unseen threats. As of today, we have lost nearly 260,000 American lives and 1.4 million lives globally to a virus. We’ve seemingly lost our ability to find compromise between our ideological opposites.

But we are still alive. We are breathing. That is something to be deeply grateful for.

So, I invite you to give our (American) Thanksgiving “traditions” of overeating and overspending the big middle finger and instead spend some time reflecting on what you have to be grateful for. Maybe share it with those you care about. Maybe even ask them what they are thankful for. Who knows? Maybe you’ll discover you have more to be grateful for than you know.