When I was living in York, England, during a Fulbright Scholarship year (1986-87), working on Medieval Studies at the University of York, my tutor hosted a “Thanksgiving Dinner” to which US Americans and Brits came. After a nice dinner of turkey and all the trimmings along with Manhattans—what they assumed was the American drink of choice---I gave them a funny lecture on the history of American Thanksgiving Day, including a reference to people staking out their shopping agenda for “Black Friday.” They heard about 1st Thanksgiving Day from colonial New England to an instance where Texas claimed the first celebration! One person in the audience asked the question about the possibility of Thanksgiving getting lost in Christmas preparations. Smug in my assumption about the idea that such would NEVER happen, I assured the person who asked that US Americans would never allow the Thanksgiving holiday to fall to little more than President’s Day or the like. Last year, I posted during each day of November something about which I am thankful or grateful. I opted not to do that this year in a public forum. Instead, I ask your indulgence on another matter. Various merchants have gotten the idea that like a certain character in Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, that the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future do their work all in one night. Many people in surveys have said they want to do Thanksgiving Day and Christmas shopping all “at one go” on one day as the Brits would say. Families obviously have their own traditions that develop over time, and I have no intention of stepping on them. My concern is that nationally we are basically eliminating a national holiday called Thanksgiving in the process. I am really sorry about this. I have been in line at 4:00 am on “Black Friday,” and I have shopped on “Black Friday” beginning at 12:01 am. This year many stories, including Macys, are opening at 6:00 pm on Thursday! Admittedly, there are religious roots to Thanksgiving for some. I am very sure for others, however, that being thankful also transcends the religious ideas. I think it is ok to be thankful that people show up and that an uncle or cousins do not tell that terrible story about me! I am sorry, however, that we cannot shut business doors and be thankful for something other than how quickly our credit card slides down the slot for more than 24 hours! We are losing Thanksgiving. For that I cannot be thankful. I think we can begin by attending a service for Thanksgiving Day, either on Wednesday evening before or on Thanksgiving Day. Personally, Im going to Christ Church Cathedral (Nashville) for a joint service with a nearby Lutheran Church (ELCA) on Wednesday evening.
Posted on: Sat, 08 Nov 2014 18:33:51 +0000
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