It’s the Thanksgiving season!
The leaves are falling, nature is orange and gold, a fresh wind blows across the avenues, and people are, unsurprisingly, just as cluelessly fake as ever
This time of the year calls for people to be happy, loving, grateful, and very gluttonous…
So we are!
We shove in the turkey, stuff in the stuffing, and try to fake contentment
Now I am not saying that no one is genuine, but that those few who actually are thankful and joyful do not realize that the sense of hope and security the season brings is quite false
Tradition is a beautiful thing, but it tends to steal the authenticity of the moment
Something may prompt one toward an action or a feeling without the sincerity of the effect being corrupted, but that is not the case with Thanksgiving
This holiday has gone from a genuine celebration to a purposeless feast – as if it were the best McDonald’s in America and happened to be built by the highway to Christmas
Everyone pauses their journey to Christmas to stop in there (cause it’s the best!), but it is still just another crappy McDonald’s…
Culture forces itself to pretend to conform to this idea in which it believes no longer
Because America has not retained her faith in God
(I mean, the pilgrims were hilariously misguided theologically, but that’s neither here nor there)
I made the argument a few days ago that one does not need to be grateful to anyone in order to reside in a state of gratefulness
…That was a flawed argument
The word I was looking for was “gladness”
To be in a state of gratefulness, one must be, by definition, grateful to someone or something
However, it does seem possible to maintain a state of gladness without being glad unto any specific person or thing
Thanksgiving is about gratefulness, not gladness
But our country refuses to give thanks to God, hence the shallowness of the holiday
Disregarding the difference between gratefulness and gladness, is anyone truly thankful at Thanksgiving?
Seems pretty superficial to me…
This is an exaggerated case, but imagine someone who is always grumpy
Supposing the Thanksgiving season causes them to realize their blessings and change their pessimistic outlook on life, how long would this fundamental shift in their nature last?
If their thankfulness is inspired by a holiday characterized by shallowness, can it be genuine?
They may have the belief that all participants in the celebration of Thanksgiving are genuinely thankful, but so do the majority of Americans
How can a deep sense of thankfulness suddenly materialize out of nowhere?
It doesn’t compute!
I don’t care if you find that the Thanksgiving season gives you a chance to count your blessings and be more conscientious of them! Every moment you are alive gives you a chance to do that!
I conclude with this:
When Thanksgiving rolls around next year, do us all a favor
And don’t lie to yourself
The Wise Ry Guy 