Thanksgiving--An Everyday Holiday

I was talking with a Canadian friend today who reminded me that north of the border yesterday was Thanksgiving.  For most Americans images of Thanksgiving are tied to the Mayflower, and the Pilgrims.  But not in Canada.  We do share the basic foods of the day in common, turkey with all the trimmings.  And Canadians watch football as well.

There is, of course, a certain irony in the fact that yesterday was also Indigenous Peoples Day here in the States.  All too often in the various
tellings of Thanksgiving, we have prettified the picture of the impact on those who already populated this continent and Europeans first arrived, north or south.  There is much to consider.  Still, that doesn't negate the importance of expressing our gratitude for life itself.

But giving thanks should not be restricted to one or another day on the calendar.  I am reminded of something I read in doing research on the Shakers in Maine.  The journal-keeper for the community, writing in the late nineteenth century as Thanksgiving approached, with its usual presidential proclamation, noted that Shakers didn't need to be reminded to give thanks.  It was something they did routinely.

Whether we are Canadian or American, or the citizen of any other nation, we would do well to emulate the Shakers, and offer up thanks any day and everyday.