As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.
- President John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917–1963)
Good morning! Good afternoon! Good evening! Whatever time it is for you when you read this, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! One of the wisest men I've ever known, Dr. Paul Stewart, once said to myself and an assembled Sunday-school class that Thanksgiving is the best holiday, because of the "big four" holidays it is the least centered on getting some thing for oneself, and the most centered on giving gratitude and benevolence to others.
This seems, to me, somewhat undeniable. There's no Easter basket expected, there's no Halloween candy, and we all know that we organize the schedule of things we want in late autumn conveniently around December 25th.
What's more, Thanksgiving is so simply and amazingly pleasant, at least in my experience thereof. It most closely resembles what I think Christian feast days are really supposed to be: we come together amiably, we consume a prodigious amount of food, during which and after which everyone is essentially required to do their best to be on their best behavior toward everyone else. Thanksgiving is the best holiday, and everyone deserves Thanksgiving.
Unfortunately, not everyone (even among those who do celebrate Thanksgiving) gets a Thanksgiving.
More unfortunately, you and I and the people we know and love have probably all contributed to this deplorable state of affairs, more or less directly.
Across the United States, on this most wonderful of holidays, there are probably millions of people at work. Some of these people do genuinely need to be at work, because they're working jobs that cannot go unfilled: the police officers, the fire departments, emergency service workers, prison guards, and so on and so forth. Some, unfortunately, do need to miss at least part of the day, for the good of our society.
But does the cashier at Walmart need to carve out 6 hours of work when she'd rather carve out 6 pieces of turkey and a relaxing evening with her family?
Do workers at Denny's, select McDonald's, Pizza Huts, Burger Kings and other restaurants need to serve their customers burgers when they could be serving their families another helping of mashed potatoes?
No. No, a thousand times.
And this brief list doesn't even take into account workers who must go to sleep early to get up for Black Friday store openings at 6 A.M., or workers who must either sleep through a large portion of the day or forego their sleep in order to work a midnight opening so that you and I and our not-so-Great-Aunt Ethel can get $40 off select Apple products in-store-only between the hours of 2:16 A.M. and 8:47 A.M.
Of course though, we can all lament that people have to work on holidays, with varying degrees of fervor. But what I would point out, what I have to say, is that if you are out shopping, or eating, or getting gas, if you are doing anything that necessitates the presence of an employee at any place of business anywhere, you are the problem.
Stores would not pay their workers to keep the store open if keeping those stores open did not provide profit for the business, and stores would not receive profit for opening the store on a holiday if people weren't shopping there on the holiday.
If we want everyone to have a full, unfettered Thanksgiving, if that is not too much to ask for the underpaid, underprivileged human beings that market capitalism turns into ground meat on our holidays, not too much to ask from the gigantic businesses that seek to separate you and I from our hard-earned money, then we must stop shopping on these holidays.
Be careful when you stock up on food for Thanksgiving, or Christmas, or Easter, write a list if you have to, take an inventory of your kitchen before you go shopping, but whatever you do, don't go shopping on the holiday.
Get the best deals you can, if you must, on stuff for yourself and your friends, but for the love of your fellow human beings and their families, don't do it at a 12 A.M. Black Friday doorbuster. The store will be just as open tomorrow, or later in the day, and in all likelihood you can probably find a better deal on Amazon.
All I'm saying here is that by utilizing services and places of business on Thanksgiving, we become part of the problem; we create a social place where there is a need for work. And if you love Thanksgiving like I love Thanksgiving, and if you want everyone to be able to enjoy it just the same, I hope and I pray that you will join me in staying home and enjoying a nice, calm day at home with friends, family, and food.
God bless, and happy Thanksgiving.
- President John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917–1963)
Good morning! Good afternoon! Good evening! Whatever time it is for you when you read this, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! One of the wisest men I've ever known, Dr. Paul Stewart, once said to myself and an assembled Sunday-school class that Thanksgiving is the best holiday, because of the "big four" holidays it is the least centered on getting some thing for oneself, and the most centered on giving gratitude and benevolence to others.
This seems, to me, somewhat undeniable. There's no Easter basket expected, there's no Halloween candy, and we all know that we organize the schedule of things we want in late autumn conveniently around December 25th.
What's more, Thanksgiving is so simply and amazingly pleasant, at least in my experience thereof. It most closely resembles what I think Christian feast days are really supposed to be: we come together amiably, we consume a prodigious amount of food, during which and after which everyone is essentially required to do their best to be on their best behavior toward everyone else. Thanksgiving is the best holiday, and everyone deserves Thanksgiving.
Unfortunately, not everyone (even among those who do celebrate Thanksgiving) gets a Thanksgiving.
More unfortunately, you and I and the people we know and love have probably all contributed to this deplorable state of affairs, more or less directly.
Across the United States, on this most wonderful of holidays, there are probably millions of people at work. Some of these people do genuinely need to be at work, because they're working jobs that cannot go unfilled: the police officers, the fire departments, emergency service workers, prison guards, and so on and so forth. Some, unfortunately, do need to miss at least part of the day, for the good of our society.
But does the cashier at Walmart need to carve out 6 hours of work when she'd rather carve out 6 pieces of turkey and a relaxing evening with her family?
Do workers at Denny's, select McDonald's, Pizza Huts, Burger Kings and other restaurants need to serve their customers burgers when they could be serving their families another helping of mashed potatoes?
No. No, a thousand times.
And this brief list doesn't even take into account workers who must go to sleep early to get up for Black Friday store openings at 6 A.M., or workers who must either sleep through a large portion of the day or forego their sleep in order to work a midnight opening so that you and I and our not-so-Great-Aunt Ethel can get $40 off select Apple products in-store-only between the hours of 2:16 A.M. and 8:47 A.M.
Of course though, we can all lament that people have to work on holidays, with varying degrees of fervor. But what I would point out, what I have to say, is that if you are out shopping, or eating, or getting gas, if you are doing anything that necessitates the presence of an employee at any place of business anywhere, you are the problem.
Stores would not pay their workers to keep the store open if keeping those stores open did not provide profit for the business, and stores would not receive profit for opening the store on a holiday if people weren't shopping there on the holiday.
If we want everyone to have a full, unfettered Thanksgiving, if that is not too much to ask for the underpaid, underprivileged human beings that market capitalism turns into ground meat on our holidays, not too much to ask from the gigantic businesses that seek to separate you and I from our hard-earned money, then we must stop shopping on these holidays.
Be careful when you stock up on food for Thanksgiving, or Christmas, or Easter, write a list if you have to, take an inventory of your kitchen before you go shopping, but whatever you do, don't go shopping on the holiday.
Get the best deals you can, if you must, on stuff for yourself and your friends, but for the love of your fellow human beings and their families, don't do it at a 12 A.M. Black Friday doorbuster. The store will be just as open tomorrow, or later in the day, and in all likelihood you can probably find a better deal on Amazon.
All I'm saying here is that by utilizing services and places of business on Thanksgiving, we become part of the problem; we create a social place where there is a need for work. And if you love Thanksgiving like I love Thanksgiving, and if you want everyone to be able to enjoy it just the same, I hope and I pray that you will join me in staying home and enjoying a nice, calm day at home with friends, family, and food.
God bless, and happy Thanksgiving.
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