“…those nations [that] are blessed whose God is the Lord….It has seemed
to me fit
and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully
acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice,
by the whole American people.”
- Abraham Lincoln
They were a hardy bunch, those early in the
game. The Americas looked to be a real
prize. While it wasn’t the Far East as
some had supposed, or had been hoping for, rumors abounded of precious metals
there for the taking. It would only take
some adventurous and hearty souls to establish a foothold and the rest would be
a grand success.
Ah yes, a great opportunity…a business
opportunity, because those early in the game were British venture capitalists. While it is certainly true there were hearty
and adventurous souls who were willing to sail to this new land (as it turns
out under not the most honorable recruitment), it was the investors who stood
to gain the most, if the venture proved successful.
Reality
bites…
In the early going it was not fruitful…not
for the investors and not for those arriving settlers who found much more
difficult circumstances than had been promised them.
The first attempt in the region by the
Spanish at Ajacan (1526) had failed and Jamestown (founded in 1607) had so many
fits and starts, it is a wonder it ever survived. While at first, the native Indians seemed
friendly, the British settlers did not understand their culture and soon found
themselves in serious conflict, and with little remaining resources. In fact, things became so desperate; in 1610,
the entire colony boarded a ship back to England only to be met a supply vessel
from at the mouth of the James River.
They turned back, determined to try again, and eventually finding
footing…timing is everything!
Thanksgiving…
While the story of Pocahontas, the Indian
princess and John Smith the British adventurer with a storied background –
surviving battles with the Spanish and Ottoman Turks – has created numerous
films and even animated movies, it was a dangerous and brutal time…not quite
the pleasantly entertaining children’s view of the first British Colony on
American soil.
And yet, all of this has brought us to this
week and the American Holiday of Thanksgiving, officially proclaimed by Abraham
Lincoln in the year of 1863. It was
intended be a time of celebration of the first official Jamestown harvest in
1621. A time to gather together and
remember just how blessed we have been and are, for the land of freedom in
which we find ourselves.
Thanks for the deals…
In recent years, Thanksgiving has become
something else. It has become not the
time of giving thanks for yet another year together, but the beginning of the
Christmas shopping season. Like most
things in our capitalist system, some stores advertised some bargains. After all, it was a holiday, families were
gathered together…what better way to take a break the day after Thanksgiving
day than to do a little Christmas pre-shopping.
It has grown from a day after, to very
early the morning of the day after to Midnight of the day of Thanksgiving. Some shoppers are so enthusiastic, they show
up in lines ahead of time and it has not been unknown for some to break out
into fights trying to get the best deal on the most popular items of the season. Yes indeed, Thanksgiving has surely evolved
in this country. The hearts of those
early British venture capitalists, no doubt would be warmed…were it only that
their lives had not been cut short by their, uh, let me see…oh yes by the 60 or
80 years, “…if by strength…” they had survived.
Enough
of this…
So, here we are preparing for the coming
Thanksgiving holiday here in the United States.
I am looking forward to seeing my mother-in-law and two
brothers-in-law. We will have a
delightful family gathering where we will take the time to love each
other. This by the way doesn’t always
just happen…one often has to make the deliberate decision to be loving at these
events. Fortunately, with our family it
comes fairly naturally.
Friday morning, in dutiful fashion, my wife
and her brothers will head out at "...O dark thirty..." to go shopping together –
they refuse to do the midnight thing, at least this year. They actually don’t do much buying on their
early day after either. What they
actually do is ‘hang out together’ and just spend time talking and catching up.
It is their way to be ‘in’ but not necessarily
‘of’ the world…
I, on the other hand, will be sleeping in
and enjoying a few stolen moments in the words of William Drummond: “Farr from the madding worldings hoarse
discords.”
I will slowly approach the new day with an
appreciation and thankfulness for yet another year with those I love and for whom I care.
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