“If the only prayer you ever said in your entire life is thank you, that is enough.”
—Meister Eckhart, theologian, philosopher & mystic
In the spirit of the Eckhart quote above, Cecile and I want to thank our dear friends Kim and Al Chien, for their
generous hospitality and for creating a sacred space—a place of refuge if you will—for all of us to celebrate Thanksgiving together.
We had the traditional meal of Turkey and Ham along with a variety of vegetarian delights and delicious desserts. Given the nagging pandemic it was a long time coming. Except for our granddaughters Lyla who will be three soon, and her baby sister Emmy who is nine months old everyone has been double vaccinated and most have had their booster shots including our son Jason, his partner Alex, our daughter Michelle and husband Kyle, his brother Chip and Kim and Al. It was so liberating not to have to wear a mask. As usual Lyla and Emmy were the entertainment for the evening. Lyla got a little ahead of herself and wanted all of us to sing Christmas songs. So we happily obliged and sang Rudolf the Rednose Raindeer together and she asked for an encore:-)
On a more serious note, not everyone celebrates Thanksgiving. According to NPR, Members of Native American tribes from around New England gathered in the seaside town overlooking Plymouth Rock, where Pilgrims settled, to mourn Indigenous people worldwide who’ve suffered disease and oppression that European settlers brought to North America. Brian Moskwetah, chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council believes that his tribe known as the "People of the Light” whose ancestors go back 10,000 years owe his tribe a debt of gratitude for helping Pilgrims survive their first brutal winter. He believes it’s important for everyone to be thankful for his ancestors who played an intricate role in the birth of our nation. The peaceful protest also highlights the profit-driven destruction of the Earth and fighting the commonwealth and federal government to hold on to whatever little land they have left.
In an empathetic and balanced view, there was an article that appeared in the Daily Californian about a Latina woman who said when she was a kid, she enjoyed Thanksgiving. It was a time to spend time with family, eat great food and 'appreciate the presence of loved ones.’ Most everyone can relate to her experience. But, as she became older and understood a lot more of her family history and the history of the holiday, it took on a new meaning. How can she and her family celebrate a holiday with such a controversial background. She posed the same question to her dad, and his response struck a chord. Yes, it is true there is a ‘horendous history’ of colonization beyond anything we could comprehend, and its important to acknowledge this, but we don’t gather on Thanksgiving to celebrate the country or how it began. We gather on Thanksgiving to celebrate each other and transform tools of oppression into tools of celebration.
