There is something special about this holiday.
There are no presents, no lights or catchy tunes. Advertisers don’t inundate us with Thanksgiving commercials.
It is a quiet holiday, but it is special.
It is a day to spend with family or friends – the ones to whom we feel the closest. We build fires and talk. We catch up on each other’s lives and embrace those who have been away. We feel the comfort of home again.
And when we eat, we celebrate. We revel in the joy of being together and hearing the old familiar laughter of days we thought were gone forever.
Thanksgiving is also a day to give thanks. For many it is a day to thank God for the blessings we have received. For others it is simply an opportunity for a silent “thank you” for the joy that life has brought.
For all of us, it is an opportunity to give thanks for all of those who have served and sacrificed on our behalf. Hundreds of thousands of selfless Americans are serving far away from their homes today. They are there, right now. They don’t get the hugs or feel the warmth of a fire crackling in the hearth. They don’t get to see the look in their families’ eyes when they tell them they love them, that they worry after them.
But I think they know how we feel. They know that we think about them and hope for their safe return home. They know that we realize the importance of what they have done – and are doing – to protect us.
And in case they don’t let me say it for all of us.
Thank you.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all.
