Thanksgiving

By order of the Canadian Parliament in 1957, today is "A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed … to be observed on the second Monday in October." The first thanksgiving observation in English-speaking North America actually took place in Canada in 1578, it became an annual holiday in 1879 but the date varied over the years. For a decade after World War I, Armistice Day and Thanksgiving Day were celebrated together; since then it has been celebrated alone, as a harvest festival and a fine reason to gather with family for a huge meal. To all of my friends and colleagues in Canada, Happy Thanksgiving.

“Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.”
     – Brian Tracy

“Pride slays thanksgiving, but an humble mind is the soil out of which thanks naturally grow. A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves.”
     – Henry Ward Beecher, 1813 – 1887

“For the rest of my life I'm going to trust that God is always at work in all things, and give Him thanks long before my simplest prayers are answered.”
     – Nancy Parker Brummett

“When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.”
     – Gilbert Keith Chesterton, 1874 – 1936

“Gratitude is a fruit of great cultivation; you do not find it among gross people.”
     – Samuel Johnson, 1709 – 1784

“On Thanksgiving Day we acknowledge our dependence.”
     – William Jennings Bryan, 1860 – 1925