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Thoughts on Thanksgiving

Army Chaplain Col. Don Zapsic (ret.) gives his thoughts on Thanksgiving.

When I think of Thanksgiving, my mind conjures up a picture of Norman Rockwell proportions. The turkey is the centerpiece of the image, golden brown and oozing with antibiotic-laced succulence. No free range, organically grown, overpriced bird for me thank you very much! Pardon the digression; I just had to get that out there. Then there is the table, covered with a long white cloth, bedecked with the finest china and no plasticware in sight. The guests in my idyllic scene are all graduates of Hallmark Movie Channel finishing school; impeccably groomed, well dressed, good mannered, vibrant, and charming. This I call the ‘ideal’.

Then there is the ‘normal’. Always a big turkey, equally good sides and a variety of table settings ranging from nice chinaware and tinted glasses to fortified paper plates and red solo cups. The dinner participants generally like each other and most behave themselves. And when I say ‘most’, there is always at least one rogue relative to reckon with. This is the one who comes with a chip on his shoulder just itching and twitching to throw the proverbial cowchip in the punchbowl. Undaunted, the disgruntled perpetrator then steps back and watches the drama unfold. The best strategy to deal with such an eventuality is to expect, plan, and map out potential best courses of action to deal with the holiday insurgent (a.k.a. party-pooper).

You may argue that despite past holiday-get-togethers, this year is somehow going This bean by any other name would be as sildenafil tablets without prescription nutritive. Shipping, depending on your locale, take between 7-20 days, although delivery times are view this cialis pill online typically shorter. Although so much attention is placed on men attempting to acquire larger packages, one never hears about all the damaging effects that can lead to manhood erections check it out cialis uk if your particular person comes with a in any other case clean up invoice involving wellbeing. In depth studies happen to be made and conducted about this tree. viagra no prescription canada to be different. “After all,” you reason, “shouldn’t family members have evolved at least a little since last Thanksgiving becoming more gentle and kind?” If things do significantly improve consider this taste of utopia the rough equivalent of the, “the blind squirrel finding a nut moment.” Have the family historian record it for posterity sake. Notice that I have not mentioned invited friends of the family at this point. They know that they must behave themselves or get kicked off of the island before the pumpkin pie makes its rounds. It’s the disenfranchised family members that are the real threat. They know that they only have Thanksgiving and Christmas to achieve relevance and want to make the best of it. 

In light of the varied personalities and situations represented at the festive table, one thing which smoothes things over like no other is gravy.  It is a remedy for a variety of shortcomings ranging from dried-out turkey to unsalted mash potatoes. The magical phrase, “Please pass the gravy” brings people together and tones down the rough edges. Gravy, like the word ‘grace’, serves us well as a metaphor covering gaffes and insults alike. So what if you have gained weight, lost hair, or belong to the ‘other’ political party. I personally have packaged responses to all of these contingencies including, “I’m storing up fat for the winter” or “I am going for the Bozo the Clown look,” and also, “Sorry, I never discuss politics with people that I like.” By the way, “Please pass the gravy…”

We are well-served to keep in mind that families are always a work in progress continually shaped by word, deed, and even indifference. They give us clues as to who we are and how we came to be. Families are where our first loyalties should lie as part of our greater spiritual duty to God Himself. Never perfect, sometimes deeply flawed, set with boundaries and safeguards as necessary. Nonetheless, Thanksgiving is a special day of reflection and reconnection navigating the good and bad with the gravy. A day that affords the opportunity to reflect and embrace all that we hold dear, whether deserved or not. Happy Thanksgiving!

Illustration: Pixabay

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American prosperity based on courage and free enterprise

In the various statements made by nations envious of America, demands are frequently made that U.S. taxpayers share the “bounty” of their land.  Completely lost in the demands for American assistance is the fact that the U.S. is prosperous for two reasons.

The first is the courage of those who first ventured here, in the face of great danger and uncertainty. Those early settlers endured extraordinary danger and hardship, and many newcomers died in their first winter on the shores of the New World.  The same can be said for the pioneers who moved the nation’s population westward to the Pacific.

The second is the free enterprise economic system that took its firmest root in America.  It is ironic that both domestic and foreign critics of America both seek the largesse of its people while criticizing the capitalist philosophy that created its wealth.

Rod Bragg, author of The Pilgrim Chronicles: An Eyewitness History of the Pilgrims and the Founding of Plymouth Colony (Regnery History) describes the journey of the Pilgrims.  On this Thanksgiving, it’s appropriate to consider how courageous those men and women were:

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“The most fearful among them presumably remained in Holland or England, but Bradford conceded that fear of the wilderness and the dangers it contained was ‘neither unreasonable nor unprobable.’ Even the drinking water in America was believed it be harmful. In reality, the freshwater streams in America were far healthier than the water sources in England. There, water quality was so questionable that the beverage commonly consumed by English families, including Puritans and Separatists, was beer or ale. The water in America was just one worry for the Pilgrims: they had also been led to fear indigenous foods—and even the air itself. ‘The change of air, diet and drinking of water would affect their bodies with sore sicknesses and grievous disease,’ it was commonly believed.

[After arriving in the New World] “Some of the Pilgrims had carelessly left their firearms on the shore where they had beached the shallop, and a band of Indians attempted to capture the weapons. To cover their raid on the firearms, the Indians unleashed a volley of arrows on the Pilgrims’ campsite—which is how the explorers found themselves in a hail of arrows. Remarkably, no one was hit. The Pilgrims on the beach yelled a warning to the others—‘Indians! Indians!’—and the men in camp opened up with their firearms. It was a brisk skirmish, but apparently no one on either side was killed. Outgunned, the Indians retreated into the forest, and the Pilgrims ‘gave God solemn thanks and praise for their deliverance.’ They dubbed the site of their skirmish ‘the First Encounter’… When Massasoit arrived at Plymouth, the Pilgrim leaders treated Massasoit with the respect afforded a head of state. They seated him on a rug and pillows in one of the Pilgrim homes, and referred to him as the tribal ‘king.’ Their respect and diplomacy were successful: Chief Massasoit agreed to a peace treaty that would be rarely duplicated in the American Colonial Era—both sides would honor it for more than half a century.

“To prepare for the colony’s autumn thanksgiving observance, Governor Bradford dispatched a four-man hunting party to obtain game for the celebration. The hunters returned with a week’s supply of ‘waterfowl’ and ‘wild Turkeys.’ Added to the event’s menu was a supply of venison, which was contributed by Pokanoket Indians. Chief Massasoit and more than ninety members of the tribe attended the celebration. Although they outnumbered the Pilgrims two to one, the Indians were ‘entertained and feasted’ as honored guests by the Pilgrims, who now viewed the Pokanokets with little fear.”

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Thanksgiving: A Legacy of Courage

There is little doubt that this year’s Thanksgiving takes place at a deeply troubled time. But it is comforting to remember that those who founded this unique holiday did so in the aftermath of enormous difficulties. Further, while the event was commemorated long before, it wasn’t until the Civil War, perhaps the darkest period in American history, that Thanksgiving was first proclaimed a national holiday by President Abraham Lincoln.

In 1621, when the colonists at Plymouth and the neighboring Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast, they did so in the aftermath of tumultuous events. The Pilgrims left their homes seeking religious freedom and a chance at prosperity.  Their transatlantic crossing aboard the Mayflower took 66 days of utter misery. When they finally reached the New World, they wound up far north of their target, in area far colder and less hospitable than where they had planned.

That first winter was brutal, and most remained aboard the cramped ship. Barely half survived until spring. Those that did were weakened by a variety of ailments. Were it not for the good will and generous spirit of Native Americans such as Squanto, a member of the Pawtuxet tribe, many more would have perished.
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But they persevered, and when their first corn harvest provided a bounty, they celebrated and gave thanks.

Americans today face great challenges.  But a legacy of endurance and heroism provides the blueprint for overcoming them.  For that heritage, it is appropriate to give thanks. Happy Thanksgiving.