As a kid I used to love Thanksgiving for reasons I would have been unable to articulate back then. Looking back I can see that it was the simplicity of the holiday, the gathering of family and sharing of a meal together. We would travel from Maryland to western Pennsylvania to stay with my grandmother, riding through the mountains and forested land became part of a wonderful tradition that made me at once feel connected to my family and the land we traveled through as well. Thanksgiving seemed to be a very intimate holiday, a holiday in its own right and not a kick-off for Christmas, although yes it was the gateway for holiday seasons. But there was no madness about it, no sudden media urge to shop and spend. It was a different time - yet we are not different people. We still crave simplicity and intimacy. We have lost our ability to connect with this longing though and now is the time to reclaim it. Spend time with friends and family today, tell someone how grateful you are to know them, stay home and urge others to as well - shopping will still be there tomorrow - and the day after. Make a vow to keep the holiday season what it should be and used to be and could be again - it's a holy day and spirit can be felt deeply on these days. Allow it in. Resist the urge to shop and spend in excess - maybe ask each family member to exchange one gift, one that takes real thought and a depth of knowledge for the person you're shopping for. The quality of a present is truly the love in which it was exchanged. Quantity will never buy love although it seems to purchase a cheapened attention span. Those gifts aren't worth the price of holiness - nothing is. My holiday vow is a return to simplicity and a prayer for grace. It starts today.
Peace,
Eric
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