Apart from giving us a four-day weekend and an excuse to legitimize gluttony, Thanksgiving gives more.
It would take a very cold heart to not be moved by the time spent with friends and family, the food shared and the warmth the holiday brings with it.
The occasion also appeals to our nobler instincts as we try to open our wallets wider than we do our mouths. Those forgotten and left behind find a place in our thoughts. An existence sometimes marred by too much meanness and too little meaning finds pause. We truly believe in all the good we wish for, in sympathy and empathy, and in lives and laws.
Our sudden but welcome generosity continues the sentiment echoed by the greatest American president of all time when he said, "The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little." Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivered messages like this one sitting on his wheelchair next to the fireplace.
The American spirit of giving was not confined to FDR but extends even to the current occupant of the White House. In what is probably his best speech so far, then-Gov. Bush eloquently stated, "We can, in our imperfect way, rise now and again to the example of St. Francis, where there is hatred, sowing love; where there is darkness, shedding light; where there is despair, bringing hope."
It is a pity that we cannot always append the same sentiment to each day. This day, however, calls for wishing well upon others. Let this space start that call.
To students, whether you just started college or are almost on your way out (or are in the middle with no end in sight), may you find the right major and with some luck, even a place to park.
To senior citizens, members of the silent generation who gave so much and asked for so little, we owe you more than thanks. The fact that some senior citizens have to choose between food and medicine and be the subject of scare tactics on Social Security is a travesty. On this day of thanks, may they find things to be thankful for.
May ladies wanting dreadfully good-looking boyfriends get them.
May ladies wanting someone else's dreadfully good-looking boyfriend not get them. (The writer of this piece would be glad to volunteer instead.)
To those that put their lives on the line in lands far away and replete in danger, may this day help sustain your courage and idealism. As protectors of the abiding moral purpose of our generation, may you get a debate that demonstrates half the class you do (note to our elected leaders).
Above all, let us find it within ourselves to understand why we are where we are. Too often, it is hard to get beyond the little things that occur day after day. It takes a special event to realize how fast time has flown by.
May we not grieve too much over things that do not work out, but that we develop perspective to look at the bigger picture. May we find a mission, a work that will drive us. And may we also experience an unadulterated elation after having achieved that goal.
To say the least, may you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Nishant Bhajaria is a computer science graduate student. Reach him at nishant.bhajaria@asu.edu.
