This evening, it occurred to me that, despite having the traditional Thanksgiving experience, with the food prep and the family gathering and the parade and, of course, the meal, at no point did I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude. When I realised that, I said a mental prayer of thanks and for thankfulness. That's when I felt what some have called the spirit of Thanksgiving.
We have certain holidays for certain reasons. Thanksgiving is, theoretically, about giving thanks. However, observing a holiday by honoring its traditions isn't always going to fulfil the purpose of that holiday. I did all of the traditional Thanksgiving things, but I didn't feel a real sense of gratitude until I prayed. By some standards, I observed Thanksgiving better earlier in the month, while riding my bike, when I said a heartfelt prayer of thanks to God for keeping a traffic light green for me.
By some measures, I failed to truly celebrate Thanksgiving this year in the way that it was intended. That will not happen with Christmas. This Christmas season, I will make a strong effort to not just go through the motions. While I do the normal, Christmassy things like buying gifts and singing Christmas carols, I'm also going to try to really get into the Christmas spirit, to really celebrate the birth of Christ, rather than just following traditions. I basically failed to celebrate Thanksgiving this year. I'm not going to fail to celebrate Christmas.
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