The Troop 1954 Wednesday Newsletter

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Hi Folks,

Thanks so much for the surprise birthday party last night.  It really was a well guarded secret and I really did appreciate it a lot.

We didn't have a formal closing last night (and other than the fact that there were really a lot of people there, I didn't get an official attendance count).  So, I didn't get to do a Scoutmaster's minute.  If I had, this is what I would have said (though probably a lot less well):

Guys, it's Thanksgiving.  In a very real sense, I think, Thanksgiving is our greatest national holiday.  Yes, we have July 4th, and Labor Day, Veterans, Day, Memorial Day, and a variety of others.  But somehow none of these touches us the way Thanksgiving does.  When I think back on my childhood.  I don't recall Memorial Day or Labor day at all (except as the end and beginning of the school year).  July 4th was fireworks and picnics.  Thanksgiving was in a whole different category, because it was then that my entire family came together.  It was Thanksgiving that generated the biggest feasts, and the best and most long lasting memories. 
     So why does Thanksgiving touch us in ways that other holidays don't.  I think there are a couple  reasons.  First, when we think about thanks, I'd suggest that what we're really thankful for is not the food on the table.  Most of us eat well every day (often too well).  We're thankful for the other people sitting at the table.  Sometimes they are family members, sometimes they are friends.  Sometimes they're even strangers...but what we're most thankful for is that we are not alone (or don't have to be).  We are members of families, of communities, of humanity. 
     Second, the story of thanksgiving itself is important.  We don't really know much about what actually happened in the fall of 1621 in Plymouth Mass.  What we remember is that it was a story of survival against the odds.  We also know that Thanksgiving became particularly important to Americans during times of great difficulty; after the Civil War and again in the Great Depression.  It was Lincoln who established it as a national holiday to be celebrated in November and FDR who set its current date.  Thanksgiving is an incredibly hopeful holiday.  It reminds us that, whatever the situation, with determination, creativity, ingenuity, and help from many sources, some unexpected, we can and will survive.
     So raise a cup (if you're over 21) and let's propose a toast: to ourselves, to our families, and to all of humanity.  Give thanks for the beauty of the world, but most of all, for our ability to survive adversity and for our collective desire to see a better future for all.

Happy Thanksgiving folks.
    
    

As always, the Troop 1954 events calendar, this and all back newsletters,  and all sorts of other useful information is available on our website at www.sanmarcos1954.org