It’s Thanksgiving Day in Canada. It’s a day of thinking of all that we have to be grateful for, of celebrating the harvest, of joining with family and friends to feast on turkey and pumpkin pie (unless you’re a farmer, in which case you’re likely very busy getting the crop off the field and the grain into the bin before winter).
In Canada, Thanksgiving has nothing to do with Pilgrims, or Plymouth Rock — although when I was a child, we dutifully colored pictures of Pilgrims in tall hats and buckled shoes. I suspect that most of the Thanksgiving-themed coloring pages available in the early 1960s had been produced in the United States.
With the smell of grain dust in the air, the crackle of leaves underfoot, and the bounty of vegetables from the garden, the Thanksgiving emphasis in Canada has traditionally been on the harvest (and the aforementioned turkey and pumpkin pie). Kidzworld has a great overview of Canadian Thanksgiving at this link.
And, of course, gratitude is of prime importance on this day of thanks-giving. Thinking of all I have to be grateful for produces a very long list. Click on the magic words to learn a few of them…
Where would I be without my family and friends? Although I don’t have many family members nearby, I feel a deep bond of connection that defies distance. I have been blessed with a loving and functional family in this age of so much dysfunction, and I realize what a treasure that is. I also have wonderful friends, either in “real” life or in cyberspace, who mean the world to me. Thank you to all of you for all that you bring to my life.
I am grateful for memories, some that pop up at the oddest times — for the shared bonds of common stories that enhance those family and friend relationships that I treasure, and for the odd little things, such as the sudden remembrance of one of my mother’s pet phrases, or finding myself singing a snatch of song that I used to hear Mum singing around the house.
The other day at the library, I loaded my arms with books, DVDs and CDs to review on my Starborn Revue blog. I am so grateful for libraries — especially for our province-wide library system that means any book, DVD or CD in a public library anywhere in the province is only a few days away from my hands. I have benefited so much from this in the past few years of doing book reviews on my blog — no longer am I limited to what is locally available, or to what I can afford to buy.
As I thought about those CDs, I realized how lucky/blessed we are to live in an age where recorded music is possible. I am grateful to all those who worked to make this a reality — it’s really not that long ago in the grand scheme of things. Before 1877, when Edison invented the phonograph, the only way to hear a particular musician was to be present at a performance. Now, we can hear our favorite musicians any time we like, with amazing clarity. We can only imagine what it was like to hear the young prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, at the piano. These days, the video would go viral on YouTube in a matter of hours!
The internet is a mixed blessing — but I am so grateful for all it has brought into my life, particularly the connections I experience with so many wonderful people, whom I would never have the chance to know otherwise. I have had the opportunity to be a part of writing classes, writing groups, and fun groups. I have had the chance to work with people that I could never have dreamed of working with, and becoming friends with, in the pre-internet days. What joy, learning, and growth this has brought to my life.
I could go on and on… Instead, I’ll point you to a lovely book that I’ve mentioned before, Grateful: A Book of Giving Thanks. The words are from a song by John Bucchino, and the book includes a CD with the song performed by Art Garfunkel. It’s a gentle reminder of the joy of giving thanks.
I am, in the words of that song, “truly blessed and duly grateful.”
Happy Thanksgiving! What are you grateful for today?
Hope you had a great Thanksgiving. Enjoyed your list of thanks. Mine is very similar. Have a great week.
Thanks, Stacy! I’m planning to have a lovely day today, after a lovely one yesterday. Very low-key Thanksgiving, but good. You have a great week, too!
What a lovely post, Beth! So right that the emphasis on Thanksgiving should be on what we’re thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving to you, and I am certainly thankful I’ve gotten to know you 🙂
Thank you, Susanna! I am so thankful to count you as one of my friends.
Well, it’s not Thanksgiving here, but I am grateful for those people who lived 200-some years ago – The Founding Fathers and the colonists. They *literally* made our future. 🙂 I am grateful to everyone who had, does, and will love me. I am grateful for people like you. 🙂
Isn’t what those people did amazing, Erik? To think what the colonists went through in establishing themselves on this continent. My great-grandparents were pioneers on the prairies in the 1880s, and I’m grateful for all they did to bring our family here, as well.
I am grateful for you, too! 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving! It is Columbus Day here in the States and I’d much rather point out what I’m thankful for.
I am thankful for my friends and family, both near and far away. I am thankful for my abilities and so much more that I take for granted everyday.
Oh, it’s so easy to take things for granted, isn’t it? That’s why it’s good to step back occasionally and really think about the things we’re thankful for. Thank YOU for being such a faithful friend and follower of my blog.
Lovely post, Beth. Have a great day!
Thanks, Catherine! You too!
Happy Canadian Thanksgiving! Thanks for lifting up public libraries. We all need to fight to keep them alive because they have opened up new worlds for so many people. Great post all around. Blessings to you.
Thank you, Mary! You are so right about public libraries. Blessings to you, as well.
What a lovely post Beth! I like the idea of the emphasis on the harvest, which really was the emphasis of the Pilgrims that first hard year. Somehow it has become inflated here in the U.S. I would prefer simplicity and good company. It is a nice day for contemplation and reflexion. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank you, Pat, for pointing out that the first Thanksgiving in the U.S. was focused on the harvest, and on gratitude for getting through that first year. It’s so good to take time to think of that for which we are thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving!! We are SO thankful for YOU!! <3
Thank you! I am incredibly thankful for the Telles family, as well! <3 <3 <3 <3 (one each)
Happy Thanksgiving, Beth. I love what you have emphasized in this post and am so grateful we met at the Hub!
Thank you, Joanna! I am grateful, too, that we met in the Hub and then in person at SCBWI!
You are such a gracious lady. I enjoyed this post and wish you a lovely Thanksgiving.
Thank you, Rhythm! You’re a great dog! I’ve had a lovely Thanksgiving, thanks to all my wonderful friends who’ve dropped in to my blog, including you.
Happy Thanksgiving Beth! Thanksgiving on the prairies was always special as it was harvest time but Mom always made a turkey and Dad always stopped working long enough to give thanks and carve the turkey. I am truly thankful for my prairie roots, my wonderful family and the amazing friends I have made along the way, including you Beth. Thanks for this reflective post.
Happy Thanksgiving, Darlene! (sorry I’m a couple of days late in replying). I’m sure we had turkey on Sunday on Thanksgiving weekend, but harvest seems to override it in my memory. Prairie roots are indeed something to be thankful for. I’m thankful for your friendship, as well.
Hope you had a grand Thanksgiving!
Every T-giving morning, I put together a list of things/people for which/whom I must give thanks. It’s quite a list, as there is so much to be grateful for, if you just use your senses you will find that you’re surrounded with delights.
And yes, memories. They must always be kept close. ALWAYS.