Giving Thanks

The American and Canadian tradition of "Thanksgiving" has been one that I have adopted whole heartedly. Everyone at some point has a reason to give thanks for health, love, family, work, happiness and prosperity. Some religions call for this "thanks giving" to be weekly on the holy day (usually Saturday or Sunday), others give thanks at the moment the blessing is received either to a higher power or just to the forces of the universe that bring good luck. Yet, regardless of the religious or personal belief, we all give thanks. Some societies even consider a person that gives thanks to have good manners and to be respectful. But for the sake of this piece of writing, I will strickly be speaking about the tradition of "Thanksgiving" with the turkey, mashed potatoes, apple pie and all the trimmings that accompany this incredible tradition.

When in my family we began celebrating Thanksgiving, I was a bit skeptical because I thought it was "too American" and the history behind it made me doubt even more. How could we give thanks when Americans massacred the Native Americans that gave them a meal during a rough fall for the pilgrims? How could we not think of the Native Americans living in reserves and having to deal with discrimination and a world that does not welcome their traditions and way of life? However, after several days of reflection, I realized that the holiday and celebration is not about the massacre of the Native Americans. Regardless of what happened after the first Thanksgiving dinner, the purpose of the meal was to give thanks to life, food, friends and family.

The past three years that I have spent in Mexico City, I have dealt with strong anti-American attitudes from all sorts of people. Anything resembling the USA or American is automatically rejected in fear it will ruin our Mexican traditions and heritage. Halloween is frowned upon by many people because it is not Day of the Dead, yet both can be celebrated without loosing culture or becoming American. Thanksgiving cannot possibly be seen as an American tradition; giving thanks is not reserved to one culture or one country. Giving thanks to anyone, God, family, luck, life, etc., is universal. We should all be thankful for what we have and who we have around us. Only by giving thanks can we continue to receive blessings.