In my 19 years of experience here on earth, it seems to me as if everyone neglects Thanksgiving. As soon as Halloween is over it seems as if most everyone is gung-ho for jingle bells and fir trees. There are many reasons why we should take a moment to remember Thanksgiving:
Break
Thanks to Thanksgiving, we are allotted a certain amount of time off to spend with our families and friends (or if we can’t go home, we can also just take time to hang out). Aside from the papers that teachers like to assign, Thanksgiving Break is something that is mutually beneficial for everyone involved.
Family
Thanksgiving is a time for gathering together and being grateful for one another. For a lot of people, this means a gathering together of their family. While this may not seem exciting to some, as some people don’t particularly like their families and others see their families more frequently in general so Thanksgiving might not seem all that significant. However, Thanksgiving is literally a day that is meant for people to tell each other what they mean to each other (note: I am ignoring the historical context) and I think that it is endearing.
Friendsgiving
If family get-togethers are not your style, Thanksgiving also allows for an excuse to get together with your friends! Whether it be with your friends from college or a reunion with your friends from high school, Thanksgiving allows us to show our gratitude to those who are closest to us!
There is one thing that almost everyone enjoys about Thanksgiving and that is the fact that it is a holiday that is centered almost solely around eating! How American! Aside from the parade and the dog show, one thing that my family sure never misses out on is the element of a communal meal. Honestly, nothing brings people together like a nice large meal. Although not everybody may like turkey, there is at least one thing on the essential Thanksgiving menu that everyone can enjoy!
Sales
If none of these previous elements of Thanksgiving catch your fancy, then here is one that no sane person can resist. Thanksgiving means SALES!!! I literally do not know a single American who can resist a good deal and some of the best ones come the day after Thanksgiving: Black Friday!!! Although, I do have to admit that Black Friday can be very intense and scary; it is perfectly understandable that maybe not everyone feels like leaving their house to go out and shop and battle against thousands of people for good deals. Thankfully, there is a remedy for this which comes in the form of Cyber Monday. DISCOUNTS EVERYWHERE!!!!
All in all, I think that Thanksgiving should be given more than just a second of your attention. Thanksgiving, unlike Christmas, is a secular holiday. It is one that everyone can enjoy. I don’t mean to put down Christmas or anything, in fact, Christmas is one of my favorite holidays. I just think that it might do us well to be a bit more grateful in our lives and Thanksgiving is something that reminds us of that.