A Season of Kindness, Peace and Goodwill?

Thoughts of Thanksgiving 2019: Hoping For a Season of Kindness

A view of my garden after the storm

The Monday Before Thanksgiving

I felt the buildup in the air. The sun surrendered to foreboding clouds and the snow started. The weather reporters warned of heavy snows through the evening and into the next day (they weren’t wrong). Panic set in among the minds of the people in my town. It was three days away from Thanksgiving, the day traditionally set aside to reflect upon one’s blessings. Those thoughts were whisked away however by the brisk winds delivering the much anticipated snow. New thoughts formulated. Turkeys must be secured! All the fixings as well! And, so… we all descended upon our local grocers and the tension was palpable.

This is MY Turkey!

I like to purchase a free range, organically fed turkey. Because the bird is sacrificed for my Thursday meal, it can be argued why it is worth bothering with the free-range aspect. My conscience is appeased to a certain degree I suppose and it is all part of revering the animal killed for my sustenance. That said, I pre-order my turkey from a local grocer and pick it up a few days before Thanksgiving so it has time to thaw. With the snow coming in Tuesday, I opted to pick it up Monday. Many dozens of people had the same idea.

It is worth noting that on a typical day, this store – Natural Grocers – is not very busy. On Monday, the line to get the turkeys snaked up and down three aisles. It took an hour to get the turkey. We all seemed to take it in stride excepting one couple. Once they had finished their wait in line and got their turkey, they decided to walk out the door with it. I guess they didn’t fancy waiting in yet another line to pay for it. As I was leaving, I noticed they were sitting on the bench outside the store handcuffed. They now have much more to worry about beyond obtaining a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner.

Over a Parking Spot and Canned Yams

I called Natural Grocers the next day to ensure they were okay after all the turmoil on Monday. As it turns out, things got worse as the evening progressed. Perhaps it was the panic of the pending storm, I don’t know. There was a fist fight in the parking lot over a parking space. Granted, this store is not very large and because of this, they don’t have a giant parking lot like the national chains, but still.

Along the same theme, the larger grocery chain down the road was not exempt from such chaos. Two people were arrested after getting into a fight over the last can of yams.

What Is Happening to Us?

I have always thought that – as this post’s title suggests – that this is meant to be a season of kindness, peace and good will. The aspects of human behavior I have depicted today are of course extreme (or I would like to think they are anyway) and could very well be due to extenuating circumstances. Perhaps not. I am often left wondering if our selfish desires are circumventing our ability to be kind, understanding and patient with one another.

Maybe it’s this: At times, the stress of everyday life can be overwhelming which for many of us is severely understating. I think back to Monday. Beyond all the stress of attempting to gather food items for a beautiful meal today, there was the added worry of the weather. On the by and by, the storm lived up to the hype. Some areas received up to two feet of snow. In my town, I would say we got 13 inches. If I had to presume, I would think if the weather was cooperative, folks would have spread out their shopping efforts between Monday and Tuesday. I personally was planning on going to get my turkey Tuesday for example.

Truly Grateful and Content

Despite it all, at the end of the day, it’s just a meal (a glorious meal but still just a meal) and it doesn’t have to be picture perfect. If fate intervened and I couldn’t get all the fixings for a traditional Thanksgiving feast, I would be fine. But that’s just me. So long as I have some food to eat, I am happy. There are many that don’t have the luxury of on demand food items from a cupboard or fridge. I do and I am grateful. I can recall a time when all I had to eat was generic 12 cent bread and generic butter. It was all I had but at least it was something.

I sincerely hope that those people that allowed the stress of it all get the better of them are having a blessed day today. As they sit around their tables, may they reflect on their blessings and experience heartfelt gratitude and contentment.

I want to thank all of you for reading. I also wish to thank each and every person who subscribes to my blog. There have been a lot of new subscribers lately and I am truly humbled. To everyone who reads my ramblings, I sincerely thank you for being here. I appreciate your presence.

To all those in the United States, I wish you and yours a very blessed Thanksgiving day.

What’s to come!

I am very pleased to announce that next month I will have a very special guest post from an author whom I admire greatly. I have featured her book in previous posts, and it is such a blessing that she will be creating a little something for my little blog. Stay tuned!

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• Expressing Love at Christmas →