The POP-EXPOSE: Has Thanksgiving become Black Thursday?
(Story by Serpentorslair Contributor ‘Train’)
Has Thanksgiving become Black Thursday?
Thanksgiving has been a US holiday since 1863, implemented by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. You may also remember Plymouth which for decades has been the so called first thanksgiving between the European settlers and the native Indians. There have been other sites in the us such as Virginia and one I have visited just this past August in St Augustine, FL.
Back in my teen years I was 1 of 5 kids and we never really sat down much for a meal because we were all busy running different directions, Thanksgiving was the one meal we got together and enjoyed a meal together. Later in life I would gather with my wife’s family and enjoy a meal, games, and conversation. After my mother in law passed a few years back, my wife and I took over preparing Thanksgiving dinner, and this year I have come to appreciate all the hard work our mothers put into 1 meal. It started with grocery shopping Sunday, then backing breads and desserts through the week, and I will be starting the turkey by 8 AM tomorrow and all the fixings.
The past several years however Black Friday has grown and stretched and a lot of stores will be open Thanksgiving day this year regular hours. I remember a time going out for a drive just to see the empty parking lots and thinking how peaceful the city was when everyone was at home enjoying that hard cooked meal. Now I realize that people have worked Thanksgiving, hospitals, group homes, retirement homes, Macey’s day Parade, but now people are working and some not by their choice, to avoid the family that they so much may dislike.
Has Thanksgiving lost it’s meaning? I know other countries like my close neighbor Canada do not make as big a deal as we do, and I’m not sure to many other countries even celebrate Thanksgiving. Maybe we should just rename it Black Thursday and Blue Friday, because that is how I feel after a couple of days trying to save a few buck on junk that we don’t really need. Now don’t get me wrong I enjoy the bargains and new gadgets as much as anyone, but can’t we take time, just one day out of the year to enjoy and appreciate the one thing that really does matter in this world, the people around you.
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