Wednesday's Words for November 24, 2010

I think I am jealous, just a little, of the American Thanksgiving.

Yes, we celebrate the holiday here in Canada—in October, not November—but it’s not nearly the occasion here that it is in the United States. Your Thanksgiving could rightfully be renamed Family Reunion Day. From all that I hear from the many friends I have next door (country-wise), Thanksgiving is bigger than Christmas, in some ways.

And I think the main reason for that could be that Thanksgiving is the American holiday. It’s a holiday that belongs to you, that you created and that’s a part of your own national heritage, from the very earliest beginnings of your nation.

I hear such wonderful stories about your holiday traditions, but the one that strikes the best chord with me, of course, is the tradition of family gathering from all over, coming home for this special time of year. Most of you feast on turkey, and pumpkin pie, amid the fellowship of family and friends.

Many of you begin your Christmas shopping on “Black Friday”. Mothers and daughters head off to the mall or favorite specialty together, and for some it’s the only time they do this together all year.

I’ve heard that some people take this occasion to begin their Christmas decorating, while others hunker down to enjoy traditional football games. Lions or Cowboys? Oh, we could spend hours discussing that one, couldn’t we?

Some of you will enjoy two days off work, giving you an extra long week-end. That alone is worth celebrating.

It was the day before your Thanksgiving in 2006 that I dared to post my very first small weekly essay on these loops. The topic, aside from the holiday, was on the similarities between us, Americans and Canadians.

You may have noticed, that while many of you and your friends have been struggling over these last couple of years since the economic implosion of 2008, Canadians have been struggling, too. Everyone has had to tighten their belts. Holiday feasts may not be quite as plush as in recent memory.

But we all keep on keeping on. We all juggle and stretch, and use our imaginations to try and fill some of the gaps left by the times in which we live.

Despite our challenges, we, in our two countries, are bountifully blessed and highly favoured. We don’t have to worry, really, about bombs falling on our heads; we don’t have to worry about armies of armed thugs coming and taking for their own all we hold dear.

We may have trouble making ends meet from time to time; yet we know it’s only a matter of time before that next good opportunity comes along. We know if we work hard, and do our best, that we have the power to improve our lives, and the lives of our families.

Sometimes the difference between success and failure is simply belief. I do completely believe in the power of positive thinking. I believe in speaking things into existence. It’s a power that anyone, who believes, can claim as their own.

And I believe, with unwavering faith, that our best times lie before us. Things change; times change; but the human heart and the human spirit endure.
May your holiday be filled with lots of laughter and love.

Love,
Morgan
www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury