WHY DO CANADIANS CELEBRATE THANKSGIVING IN OCTOBER?
Thanksgiving Day in Canada occurs on the second Monday in October. It is an annual statutory Canadian holiday which celebrates the harvest and other blessings of the past year. The harvest in Canada happens earlier than in the U.S.A. It is a similar holiday to that of our Southern neighbour but unique to us as well. On January 31, 1957, a proclamation was issued stating Thanksgiving was to be “A Day of General Thanksgiving for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed.
Our actual Thanksgiving holiday is on a Monday. Many Canadians choose to celebrate Thanksgiving on any day during the long weekend. Foods traditionally served at Thanksgiving include roasted turkey, stuffing, potatoes with gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, sweet corn, various fall vegetables (mainly various kinds of squashes but also Brussels sprouts), and pumpkin pie.
WHY IS THANKSGIVING MY FAVOURITE HOLIDAY?
There are many reasons why this has always been my favourite holiday.
My first reason why Thanksgiving is my favourite holiday is because the weather brings forth a magnificent transformation of colour to the trees. October is often still quite nice with bright sunny days with a definite cool air blowing. It is the last time most people are enjoying being outside before the deep freeze and frost hits. This cool weather with chilly nights activates the amazing and beautiful change in colours of the leaves. There really is nothing more wonderful than to be outside witnessing the myriad of colour that we get here.
The Glory of Colour at Thanksgiving!
My second reason why Thanksgiving is my favourite holiday is because of the very fact it is a harvest festival. We are truly blessed with land that is conducive to growing amazing foods throughout the growing season. The harvest signals the last of the local vegetables etc. available before we must rely on imports from other countries around the globe. I think as Canadians we tend to forget how wonderful it is to have the ability to eat locally grown foods. There is no doubt the flavour is amazing and something I miss with winter imports.
My final reason why Thanksgiving is my favourite holiday is because of the very essence of why this holiday was created. Not only is it a harvest celebration but it is also a celebration of all the blessings that we have received throughout the year! Personally, I feel that we often forget those blessings. Thankfulness is the core of this holiday! I know that many people feel that the struggles of life can make Thankfulness a hard thing to feel. I know this first hand. The last year certainly forced me to face multiple challenges! Most of those challenges dealt with my health. 1 year ago, I was trying to process an illness that had me in “dire straights” as the specialists told me. “You almost didn’t make it” is not a comforting thing to hear by a team of doctors. But overcoming those odds, is something I will be ever Thankful for. I could write a list of the negatives for sure! Here are just a few.
- no travel out of province/country permitted until I am fully deemed stable which can last a year or more.
- not knowing what caused such an illness ( but GUARANTEED it was not Covid related)
- minor surgery turned into a high risk procedure from which I am still suffering nerve damage from
- 28 days in the hospital with 26 of them wearing an oxygen mask
- being ventilated for surgery and being told it could be for multiple days
- multiple tests done while there and even more over the last year
- needles in my stomach to prevent blood clots every day
- slow recovery with problems still occurring
How Can I Be Thankful for All That when in reality going through it was a nightmare?
Its actually easy to be Thankful and Kind rather than miserable and mean. Many people tear apart our health care system but they were phenomenal with me. For that alone, I am ever Thankful! I am Thankful I made it through. I am Thankful for the love and support I had from family and friends. I am Thankful that my body has slowly healed on its own, without medication. I am Thankful that my breathing is normal despite nodules and “other stuff” in my lungs. I am Thankful I live in a county where all these medical bills were paid for and I have never seen a single bill! I am VERY THANKFUL that my little girl Jessy needed daily walking which forced me to get out and walk, walk, walk! That was apparently a huge part of my recovery.
I said several times in my Camino Hiking Posts that we choose what to focus on in our lives. Life is never fair. Life owes us nothing. Life is never all fun and joy. Life can be brutal and deal us one awful set of cards! How we choose to react to those situations/circumstances makes all the difference. “If you were able to paint a picture of your life, what colour pallet would you choose?” I know I would still choose bright and vibrant colours instead of the dark dreary ones. BELIEVE me, when I say that my own life has had reason enough to paint a dark grey/black painting. I am just ever Grateful and Thankful that I choose not to do that! Deciding to look for Thankfulness in life despite the major blows and not lay blame is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. Its a choice I learned to make many years ago!
My own experiences have taught me these 2 things;
1) I am Thankful for every struggle that has been given to me in life. If it were not for those struggles, I would NEVER have known my strengths and become who I am today!
2) It really is easy just to be nice each other! Thankfulness can begin with simply being kind to each other!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
I ask you again, What Are You Thankful For?
KEEP WALKING!
