The Best Day

What’s the best day of the year?

Well, it depends.

From an individual, personal standpoint, it could be a birthday, a wedding day, moving into a new house, scoring that perfect job or the birth of a child.

But I’m talking about the best day from a national perspective.

For me, that day would have to be Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is the ONE DAY of the year that has really no monetary or social expectation aspect to it: There’s no card to buy and send on time, no presents to purchase, no religious or nationalistic overtones -- really nothing special to do except get together with friends and/or relatives and enjoy probably the best meal you’ll have all year.

It’s a day to relax and appreciate our friends and family members and give thanks for the blessings of Life.

But OK, I know there’s more to it than that.

From a male perspective, it’s often about kicking back on the couch and watching a football game while the heavenly aromas of delicious foods being prepared in the kitchen permeate the house.

From a female perspective, Thanksgiving has a different aura. It’s about shopping for that perfect bird, starting the cooking process the day before the holiday and keeping all the food goodies on a finely-tuned production schedule that culminates in that first bite of a meal that will likely ultimately culminate in too much of a good thing.

You know: Loosening the belts, eyelids growing heavy and mutterings of “Oh, I ate way too much-- AGAIN!”

But an hour later the same people are back to the table for pie and assorted desserts.

The main downside to Thanksgiving, of course, is trying to keep the peace between your liberal and conservative relatives when the topic of conversation turns to politics or religion.

Topics to avoid at all costs.

The BEST things to talk about are -- obviously -- what you’re thankful for as another year rolls to its conclusion. IF there should be a requirement of this special day, it ought to be that.

Yes, I know it can be a little embarrassing to talk about such things in front of others, especially when the meal preparers are saying, “I didn’t make this food to eat cold. Now pass the mashed potatoes!”

But there’s a way around that: Just let people know in advance you’d like them to say at least ONE THING they’re truly thankful for as they settle in to overeat (Yes, you CAN start chowing down and still say something thankful as the Thanksgiving meal gets going).

If there’s anything that’s going to stick with you as you head back home after the Thanksgiving feast, it should be the memory of knowing what the people you care about most are thankful for.

President Lincoln declared a national holiday for Thanksgiving in 1863 -- smack in the middle of this nation's greatest test, the Civil War. But we’ve been celebrating Thanksgiving in one way or another since 1621 -- exactly 400 years ago -- when the Pilgrims and their Native American neighbors sat down together in peace and friendship.

Unfortunately, that peace and friendship didn’t last, but the idea of pausing in our busy lives to be thankful for the gifts of Life is something that should never disappear.