Make Thanksgiving a time of giving

I may be a four legged furry creature with whiskers, but I am not living in a vacuum.

I do realize that winter is upon us and with it comes the season of Thanksgiving. Traditionally Thanksgiving is a season during which we count our many blessings.

I don’t find this particularly difficult, since I once lived under an old car and now have a luxurious home in the Pine River Public Library.

For the uninitiated – I can’t imagine there are very many of those – the myth goes something like this: “…the American holiday has religious undertones related to the deliverance of the English settlers by Native Americans after the brutal winter at Plymouth, Massachusetts” [en.wikipedia.org]

But wait! Rather than gorging ourselves on more food than we would normally consume in a week and being thankful for Aunt Susan and Uncle Fred who recently arrived from Florida to share this holiday, why not approach it from the opposite perspective?

Instead of being the recipients, why not be the givers?

In terms of the myth, why not take the position of the Native Americans?

Embracing this theme, our Pine River Public Library will have a box available for anyone who would like to donate non perishable food for the local food shelf. Bring some food into the library for Thanksgiving and beyond. (The box will be at the library until spring.)Make it fun! Bring good stuff! Be creative! There are more things that come in cans than tomato soup and green beans!

In parting, let me just say that the holidays are a wonderful time to think of others. Of course, thinking of others needn’t be isolated in time, but for some of us a gentle reminder is helpful. I have my eye on a very tasty mouse for Muriel for Christmas. Shhhh. Don’t tell her. I want it to be a surprise. As many of you may know, traditionally cats were housed in libraries to keep the mice out of the books. This one will be boxed and wrapped festively and placed under the Christmas tree.


Happy Holidays to you and yours.

Browser, the library cat

Printed in the Pine River Journal 27 Nov 2008