Thanksgiving

It’s Thanksgiving today and I am happy to know that we have a day reserved to be thankful. In the busyness of our lives it can be easy to take the good things for granted. Historically Thanksgiving wandered through several months before settling in October. The foods we take for granted such as turkey and pumpkin pie were brought north from the USA by the United Empire Loyalists fleeing the American Revolution. Being on the third Monday of October means that Thanksgiving creates the much loved three day weekend.

Lining in Canada there is much to be thankful for:

1.  We live in a peaceful country, safe from civil war.

2.  Most of us have clean safe running water.

3.  Most of have have a reliable source of electricity (unless there is a big storm and a tree falls down).

4.  We have universal free education open to girls and boys.

5.  We have a stable and well regarded banking system.

6. We have universal health care (a bit frayed and still there).

7.  We have freedom to practice or not practice religion.

8.  We have relatively honest elections at all levels of government.

9. We have a social safety net (also a bit frayed and still there).

10. We have a nation wide communication system that is quite stable.

11. We have access to safe food, although many of us do struggle with getting enough food.

Those are just a few of the things I am thankful for at a macro level. On a personal level, I am thankful for a loving partner, for a mother who is still alive at 85, for friends, a roof over my head and my much loved iPhone. What are you thankful for? Please share with me in comments.