The Ungrateful Demise of Thanksgiving

The Washington Dispatch ^ | November 6, 2003 | Frank Salvato

[The Rant]

Well, Halloween is over and the retailers in the United States have already started hawking the latest gizmos for Christmas. Ah, who am I kidding, they have been doing it since June but it seems to grate on me just a bit more now that we are preparing for Thanksgiving, the forgotten holiday. Suddenly, a holiday that encompasses everything that we should be doing, giving thanks for all of the good things we have in our lives and giving the narcissism that sometimes creeps into them a rest, stands overshadowed by the force-fed industrialism of our retail community. Never before have we so needed to embrace this time of reflection.

Every day we are inundated with what is wrong in the world. The media bombards us with political scandals, conflicts from around the world and a nauseating plethora of contemptuous political correctness along with those very vocal miscreants that support it. Common sense is so out of the picture that if envisioned it would look like a cowering puppy that has sought out the security of the space underneath the bed of the world in order to avoid its abuse. We all know the correct things to do regarding any given situation yet we have to cow-tow to the overly vocal special interest nags that total the most miniscule of minorities as they garner the largest of media coverage. At the end of the day we want to erupt in frustration because what should have been a simple and happy day has turned into a session of complaining, impractical demands and 24 hours of visionless twaddle.

We need Thanksgiving yet we charge from Halloween to Christmas. We need the break from our everyday lives and the opportunity to get together with friends and family without the expectation of anything but camaraderie. We need to spend time with those we seldom see throughout the year just as much as we need to realize our appreciation for those who we see every day.

So many times we see people missing those who have left us, be they loved ones and friends who have slipped the surly bonds of earth or people who have moved on from the realms of our lives. I know I have lost too many friends through the hand of God, friends that I wish I could talk to one more time just so I could tell them how important they were to me and that they helped me to enjoy and appreciate my life. I would like to be able to talk to my own Father once again just to tell him that I am bigger than any disagreements we may have had and that I love him for who he was and not what I expected of him. I wish I could tell my Grandmother just one more time that she is precious. To carelessly gloss over one of the most opportune times of the year, a time for reflection and thanksgiving, is to miss one of life’s few golden opportunities to re-invest in ourselves, our friends, our families and humanity.

As the drone of the talking heads rages on through the electric wonderland that is the television, as we read about all the bad that exists in the world courtesy of the editorializing rag merchants, how can we not be saturated with it all? How can we not need a moment, if but once a year, to stop, turn off the electronic chatter box, put down the pressed pulp that once was a tree and embrace those that we have taken for granted, albeit unwittingly, over the course of the year? How can we be too busy to pass up the opportunity to let those who are important to us understand how we feel? How can anything be more important than allowing ourselves the opportunity to share appreciation and love with those who are important to us?

The cash cow of Halloween has given way to the commercial onslaught of Christmas. And as many of us start making our shopping lists and getting Christmas cards out of the way I say you can count me out of all of those activities until after November 27th. While I love the warmth that Christmas has to offer I believe that the spirit of Thanksgiving is just as powerful if not more so. While the stores have their pre-Thanksgiving sales I will be thinking about those that are important to me, those who I can expect to see over the holidays and those who have moved on. I will be giving thanks for them, that they have even graced my life. Perhaps if everyone took the time to do this the world would be a bit less ruthless…if just for one day.

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Frank Salvato is a political media consultant, a freelance writer from the Midwest and the Managing Editor for TheRant.us. He is a contributing writer to The Washington Dispatch, OpinionEditorials.com, AmericanDaily.com and the Free Republic Network. He has appeared as a guest panelist on The O’Reilly Factor and his pieces are regularly featured in Townhall.com, GOP-USA & The Iconoclast.com and occasionally featured in The Washington Times and The London Morning Paper as well as other national and international publications.

[eiffel]

Hey, I'll be in Tucson for Thanksgiving this year too! I'll be there to meet my boyfriend's parents, but hopefully I can enjoy it anyway.

I also have to agree that the writer is off base in bemoaining the status of Thanksgiving. Personally, I'm thankful that advertisers and retailers aren't ramming anthropomorphic turkeys and pilgrim hats down our throats. "Non-commercial" shouldn't be confused with "forgotten."
Among my friends, Thanksgiving has become really popular in recent years, particularly since many of us have moved far away from our families. It's a chance to gather intimately and apprectiate our lives, and I hope it remains that way.

[discostu]

Just make sure you get to spend some time outside, and find out if they have a pool there's a really good chance of great swimming weather and you wouldn't want to be caught unprepared.

Exactly, I find it interesting that he decries commercialism on one hand but his proof that Thanksgiving has been forgotten is that it's not commercialized. It's good that the holiday has remained focused on private quiet time.

[CDHart]

"For a dollar it comes cooked out of a window while you wait in your car, not from planting in the spring."

LOL! I have to tell you about my experience with the pumpkin. I decided to make pumpkin pie from scratch, so took the Halloween pumpkin and steamed it for quite a while, until I could scrape out the insides. Then I continued to cook it down, and finally put it in the blender to hurry up the process. Made the pie crust and filled it and baked it.

The whole process took close to six hours! Now I know why pumpkin pie used to be such a treat.

Carolyn

[CDHart]

"For a dollar it comes cooked out of a window while you wait in your car, not from planting in the spring."

LOL! I have to tell you about my experience with the pumpkin. I decided to make pumpkin pie from scratch, so took the Halloween pumpkin and steamed it for quite a while, until I could scrape out the insides. Then I continued to cook it down, and finally put it in the blender to hurry up the process. Made the pie crust and filled it and baked it.

The whole process took close to six hours! Now I know why pumpkin pie used to be such a treat.

Carolyn

[Jack of Diamonds]

In 1980, I was a contractor fresh out of the Navy and working in the basement of the Pentagon. There where about seven of us working the midnight shift on Thanksgiving. All of us where about the same age (26), but only one was married, It was going to be a long night.

We decided to have our own celebration before work in the office break room. I volunteered to bake the Turkey. This turned out to be harder than I thought because I forgot the breadcrumbs for the stuffing. I drove all over the Northern Va area looking for a store that was open on Thanksgiving day. I was just about to give up when I found a Chinese grocer that was open where I was able to buy Stovetop Stuffing.

It was hard not being able to find a store open, but I felt good that everyone seemed to be home with their family the way they should be on Thanksgiving.

Even those of us, keeping the Pentagon operating through the long night, where with friends. It was a night I will long remember.

My point is that Americans should be home on this day and not working bust to make a buck for the big corporations.

[old patriot]

Here in the Austin area the local police department has suspended, with pay, twenty-one police officers, including one lieutenant, for continuing to fish while on duty and in uniform while they were suppossed to be guarding the local power plant at Long Lake. I guess it was too boring to stay awake watching for potential terrorists and not go fishing. I know that Austin is trying to promote a laid-back lifestyle, but Mayberry RFD was never that laid-back. Andy was always off-duty whenever he went fishing with Opie.

Who else could get caught fishing on the clock, be told to stop doing it, and still get away with being suspended with pay. I guess there really are two sets of standards for cops and the rest of us. Well, at least we do not know if Dunking Donuts has a franchise close by either. This really takes the cake, donuts, and the bait.

Old Patriot

[discostu]

How far away is the lake from the power plant? Gaurd duty is really boring, guys gotta do something to stay awake, as long as they're not drinking while they're fishing and still doing their rounds I don't see a problem.

[LuLuLuLu]

I volunteered to bake the Turkey.

Turkeys aren't baked. They're roasted. ;)

[Held_to_Ransom]

So true. Who watches those who watch.

We had an embarrassment with the famous 'John Dupont shoots his wrestling team member' trial. Turned out that old John had a stash of illegal weapons. Well that could happen, but the embarrassment was that the local cops were practicing with them on his shooting range on a regular basis.

[cubreporter]

Congratulations on a most sad yet beautiful article. Yes, Thanksgiving is a very special time. The meal is huge but one we waited for every year. It was part of the celebration of the day. Family, grandparents, kids, all excited becuase the next holiday would be Christmas and...it seemed forever between those two holidays.

You said it all so eloquently. Especially the part of the electronic wonderland. There is too much opinion on TV anymore and we don't watch much at all.

We will be spending Thanksgiving with family and friends and will be remembering those as you said who have left us. We'll remember the joy we shared with them and with others for so many years.

Thank you for such a wonderful, warm and caring article on a most important day. We wish you a happy celebration with those you love and and we hope you enjoy this time of blessings and reflection on what Thanksgiving really means.

[MineralMan]

"In 1980, I was a contractor fresh out of the Navy and working in the basement of the Pentagon. There where about seven of us working the midnight shift on Thanksgiving. All of us where about the same age (26), but only one was married, It was going to be a long night.

"

My favorite Thanksgiving story happened when I was stationed at Fort Meade in Maryland in 1968. A lot of us were a long way from home and mess hall thanksgivings pretty much bite.

But, some local church decided to invite military guys to the members' homes for Thanksgiving. There was a sign-up sheet in our orderly room in October. I signed up, and got a nice invitation in the mail from a family about 10 miles away, complete with driving instructions and an offer to be picked up if I didn't have a car. I called them and said I'd certainly be there, and thanked them.

Thanksgiving day, I drove to that house,in my Class A's, to find a large, extended family celebrating Thanksgiving. I was welcomed just like a member of the family, and treated to a wonderful meal, good conversation and appreciation for my service. What a great Thanksgiving.

Something to think about for you folks who have an extra seat at your table and a military base nearby. Some young soldier will have the same kind of memories I have of that family. We still exchange cards at Christmas.

[cubreporter]

OOoops, I meant to respond to the author but I responded to you instead. It's OK....you know what I mean. Thanks for the great article and Happy Thanksgiving to you too!!!

[JoeSchem]

Buy the kids Thanksgiving toys and candy, and watch the retail industry and media go bonkers over the holiday.

[johnb838]

Well, that's what they think Thanksgiving is -- The beginning of the shopping season. I always thought that Thanksgiving and Christmas really bracketed the Holidays. Every day in the middle was special.

[cubreporter]

True and very sad.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

I don't like this column, for a couple of reasons. First, its the least commercial of the major holidays, and I like it that way. Most families celebrate it very sedately, among each other and their closest friends, which is why there isn't an orgy of coverage. Second, I don't know about you, but I go to huge lengths when I host this family time to celebrate the blessings of the year - and spend more than a few hundred bucks on it. It is far from neglected or forgotten from my perspective.

[old patriot]

The real figure was five that were suspended without pay, but the real corker was that they continued after they were told to stop. Well, at least they did not shoot any fish while they were on duty. But they were seen cleaning the fish while in uniform.

Old Patriot

[old patriot]

I guess that it is yoo bad for the retailers that they cannot start the Christmas shopping season on the day after New Years.

[old patriot]

These were being watched and that still did not get them to stop for over a year. Unbelievable what some will do to get out of a little work. What do they do on vacation?

Old Patriot