Turkey, Tryptophan and Thanks

It’s Thanksgiving day in the good ol’ USA. For most of us this means family time (good or bad), football, and way too much food.

Across the nation we eat, complain about how much we ate, watch whatever game is on, and reminisce of Thanksgivings past.

Many people will take the latter part of the day to formulate their plan of attack for the next morning’s Black Friday sales.

For some, perhaps way too many of our nation’s citizens, however, Thanksgiving day is just one more day to struggle in the cold, searching for a simple meal and warm shelter.

I ask that you remember those less fortunate than you on this (and every) day. When you’re about to blow up at a relative, remember those with no family; when you are stressing about the mashed potatoes not being “just right”, think of how blessed you are to be eating such a meal.

This post is not meant to depress or make any one of us feel guilty for what we have. Just the opposite, in fact.

BE AWARE, BE THANKFUL, BE BLESSED and don’t lose sight of the important things this holiday.

It is Thanksgiving…Give Thanks for your blessings…and if you can, when it’s all said and done, GIVE BACK.

I’ll be spending my Thanksgiving with my family, eating, laughing, celebrating.

And on Friday morning, instead of hitting the sales, like I used to, I’ll be heading to a retreat center to help lead a group of teenagers through a youth retreat, hoping to guide them a little closer to God, and to offer them an alternative to the greed, ugliness, sadness and despair in the world.

For a professed shopaholic like myself, giving up Black Friday sales, which I used to call “The Shopping Olympics”, used to be a sacrifice. I find that now, I’m thankful. I’m thankful that I spend that time after Thanksgiving day away from the world, away from technology, away from retail, away from the news, and completely enveloped by God’s love, by my faith family and friends, and by the youth…our future.

I can’t think of a better way to give back, and to give Thanks.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.