Why I Don't Celebrate Thanksgiving

On the fourth Thursday in November every year, we celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States. While a lot of school plays and displays connect this holiday with the Pilgrims of Massachusetts Colony, the fact is, this holiday only began in 1863, when during the Civil War, President Lincoln proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday, November 26. While the Pilgrims did have a three-day feast to celebrate and give thanks to God for 'guiding them safely to the New World,' this was more of a European tradition - days of prayer - to give thanks for such things as a military victory or the end of a drought, or having a good crop season.

The first documented thanksgiving feasts in what is now the United States were celebrated by the Spanish in the 16th century. Many of the English colonies also routinely conducted thanksgiving feasts.

That's a capsule history of Thanksgiving in the United States; it doesn't explain why we use the Pilgrims as symbols rather than, say, the Spanish, other than the dominance of English influence in our customs. Thanksgiving in its original form was a religious observance for members of a community to give thanks for some common purpose. This held for a long time in the U.S., when the Christian religion was dominant, but changed during the 19th and 20th centuries as successive waves of migration from regions other than Europe changed the ethnic and religious demographic, and as Americans experienced two world wars. The Thanksgiving we celebrate today, while still religious in many places, is mainly a time for families to come together to eat traditional foods, demonstrate their thanks for each other, and enjoy a good football game, or two, or three, and watch the parades - the most notable being the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade held in New York City. It's also a time when people travel; to visit friends or reunite with family. Thanksgiving week is one of the busiest holidays as far as travel is concerned, with airlines booked weeks in advance, and hotel rooms extremely hard to find.

Thanksgiving in America is also a prelude to Christmas for most businesses. Right around Thanksgiving is when networks start airing traditional Christmas shows, and right after Turkey Day, the pre-Christmas sales start. One of my favorite Thanksgiving shows is The Wizard of Oz, which is often aired on Thanksgiving Day. Regarding the sales, not being much of a shopper at any time of the year, I try my best to ignore them.

What does Thanksgiving mean to you? For me, it's a time to reconnect with family members, many of whom I only see or contact during that holiday season because of my frequent travel, and the fact that I've resided mostly outside the United States for the past 49 years. As to it being a special day of thanks, I feel grateful for good health and good fortune every day of the year, and have no compelling personal need for a special day - but, that's just me. For most people, it's important, and I respect that.

As to the eating of traditional foods, even though turkey is one of the healthier fowls to eat, my personal preference is ham; unless I'm traveling in Southeast Asia, in which case, the local cuisine is much better for my palate. So, I guess you could say, I don't really celebrate Thanksgiving. I know that makes me sound like some kind of angry old curmudgeon, but really, I don't have to celebrate a special day - I give thanks every day.