Dear Editor:
I recently attended a special historical monument where animated figures of people representing Thanksgiving were on display. I thought, should someone decide to desecrate this wonderful monument to our past it would be unforgivable.
So often we find ourselves feeling neglected because we don't have the newest cellphone, although a friend or relative does; we don't have the newest fad in clothing, or a large color flat screen; maybe we don't have a large enough home to handle the dinner we had planned, yet it is too large for the two of us to live in.
We have so much to be thankful for while millions of people have no reason to be thankful for they have nothing but the clothes on their back, and sometimes not even that; some people are living in tents and caves, yet they pray to their creator with thankfulness.
We need to take stock of ourselves. Are we a greedy and unappreciative? I remember when I was very young, living at home with my mother and grandmother. The house was about 24 feet by 24 feet in all for the three of us. The rooms were pretty tiny, but you know what? We had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal of roast chicken, mashed potatoes, peas from grandmother's garden, and corn from a friend's back yard row of stalks. We ate our food on what we used to call TV trays, although we did not have a television. Guess what? We were happy to have what we did have, and after dinner at around 4 p.m. we walked the 10 blocks or so to attend services at our local church and offer our thanks for what we had.
If we allow self-pitying, thinking that we are so poor, maybe it is time to take stock of what we have been given. Churches, the Salvation Army, and many other organizations give free dinners to the homeless. Several locations offer free clothing. I have spoken to some of the homeless who tell me it would be humiliating for them to be seen getting fed at a place like that, but they resort to other means of fulfilling their desires while talking on their cell phone (which not everyone can afford).
Let's take a few minutes and bow our head thanking our creator for what we have instead of what we have not!