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Thanksgiving Day is a special day for most of us. Most of us have the day off or have taken the day off from work duties. Around my house I could smell something cooking in the kitchen from the moment I woke up, as preparations had begun early for the traditional Thanksgiving meal later today. It’s the only holiday I can think of that is like that…where the main focus is the gathering of family and friends and the meal itself. A strictly American holiday too…unique to our country only.
It was a pleasant morning and a walk with some fresh air sounded good. I thought it wouldn’t do me any harm either to get a head start on burning some calories with the Thanksgiving meal coming later. I walked for a while, enjoying the excursion…and then I heard some chattering above. I looked up to see a couple squirrels that were busy running about in a large tree. As I watched these industrious guys, I noticed there were pieces of debris that fell occasionally straight below as they husked the nuts they had gathered. I laughing to myself that the squirrels were getting ready for their Thanksgiving meal too.
A little later on I spotted something that I thought was a bit unusual. There were a huge number of birds, mainly Robins, that were darting about on the ground scavenging for food. Robins are more often associated with Spring so I was amazed at the number of them this time of year. It’s been unseasonably warm this Fall though so maybe the Robins have stayed longer than usual. I smiled thinking that that they too were gathering food for their Thanksgiving meal.
But of course, squirrels and robins have no idea that it’s Thanksgiving. It’s a man-made invention. Just another day for them. Taking it step farther, I started thinking about the people who consider this day to be just like any other day. Those without family around to gather with or money to buy the food that most of us take for granted today. Even though I know this to be true, it’s hard for me to really understand how others like this must feel on this day.
So, what started out as a leg stretcher and calorie burner ended up bringing to me a renewed appreciation for things that I love and sometimes take for granted.
As we gather for the feast, let us be truly thankful for the many blessings we have and enjoy the time spent in each others company. Thanksgiving…a perfect name for it.
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