Looking back on the history of Thanksgiving, it can be said that the holiday has traditionally been surrounded with turmoil.
When the first settlers of North America broke bread with the Native Americans, they were celebrating the immense odds they had struggled against and the fact that they were still alive.
Years later, George Washington actually had to fight to establish the day as a holiday in 1789 because many, including Thomas Jefferson, thought that the hardships experienced by the first settlers didn't warrant recognition.
Abraham Lincoln established Thanksgiving as a national holiday in 1863, during a time when the country was in the midst of what seemed like an endless civil war. Franklin D. Roosevelt made Thanksgiving occur on a uniform date every year during an economic depression and impending world war.
Thanksgiving's presidential recognitions have come in times when being grateful and appreciative didn't come easily. But maybe that's the real point behind Thanksgiving. It provides the perfect moment of reflection to remind Americans that they can weather the storm – that this country, although not always perfect, provides so much.
Despite the norms of turkey, football and travel delays, Thanksgiving is fundamentally about the people and the things that Americans have faith in. It celebrates ideas such as family, close friends and shared principles: ideas that this nation can count on to guide every citizen through the jungle that is life.
Much like history has shown, this Thanksgiving is surrounded in turmoil. Many in America have lost their jobs and their homes. The country has been captured by heated debates about health care, wars in the Middle East and the economic crisis. Americans live in difficult times, but it's nothing we haven't dealt with before.
As a country and as individuals, we are constantly being tested. But the wisdom of Hector St. Jean de Crevecoeur, an early settler, still holds true. He wrote, 'Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labors and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world.'
De Crevecoeur saw what was going to make this country a great nation. Instead of a country linked by the same bloodlines, it was an inclusive identity that welcomed all, regardless of race, religion or political ideology.
Despite all the economic challenges, troops fighting in the Middle East, and the current debate over health coverage, the poorest of Americans citizens are still far better off than the majority of people that inhabit the rest of the planet.
It is here in America where we still enjoy freedom of speech, the rule of law, the right to vote, outstanding public education and public health, and of course, freedom of religion.
Remember on this upcoming Thursday to be thankful for the freedoms Americans benefit from and for the family and friends that offer guidance. Times may be tough, but weathering dark, turbulent times is embedded in this nation's blood.
On this Thanksgiving, America turns to its past, and has a renewed appreciation of the things to truly be thankful for.
