I can’t think of a holiday I enjoy more than Thanksgiving.  Sure, it’s an eating orgy, and everything we eat can be considered comfort food, from stuffing, to mashed potatoes, to turkey, roasts, corn casseroles, etc.  There is no salad and no soup on Thanksgiving.  It’s a waste of stomach space.  I don’t even drink beer, which I love, because I don’t want to use any stomach real estate for that.  People come home for Thanksgiving.  No one wants to be away from their family on this holiday.  That’s why it’s the most travelled holiday.  All these reasons on their own would make this anyone’s favorite holiday.  But for me it’s not the main reason.

I was shopping in Costco two days before the holiday and met a fellow Dunkin Donut franchisee shopping there for Thanksgiving.  Being that he is a Muslim I was surprised at first that he celebrates the holiday.  He told me he has 45 people coming to his house and his shopping cart proved it.  The fact that we both celebrated Thanksgiving made me feel good inside.  During these times of terrorism fears, and the terrorism being so based on Western vs. Middle Eastern differences it gave me a good feeling to know that we had this in common.  I love universal concepts.  Things that show our similarities.

There is a universally good feeling on this day.  No one is excluded from giving thanks.  It’s not religious based at all.  Of course if you look on Facebook you will see pictures of Jesus giving thanks, but this holiday is not exclusive to Christians.  It’s more spiritual than Christmas because even in our consumerist society we don’t really have anything commercial tied to Thanksgiving except for food.  (Of course, the lack of consumerism for even a few days explodes into Black Friday the very next day) Everyone is included for Thanksgiving.  Deepak Chopra says that gratitude is the gateway to your true self which is where your perfection lies.  That’s why I try to celebrate Thanksgiving every day.