By Ashlie Miller

Like many parents of young children, I took my youngest two children and a neighbor to the Cabarrus Arena’s Touch a Truck event last weekend. In addition to touching the trucks and other vehicles, there were many opportunities to express gratitude — even though that was not our plan for attending. There were also a lot of opportunities to receive candy or marketing swag — stress balls, pencils, frisbees and the like. Rather than telling my kids to say “thank you,” I try to lead with, “What do we say to someone who gives us something?” We also tried to thank each civic member for their contribution — often unseen or considered — to our daily lives. Thankfully, by now, more often than not, they remember to do so without much prompting, but like most humans, in a sea of candy and freebies, it is easy to walk with a sense of entitlement, leaving the gratitude behind.

It seems we need a reminder to be grateful in our own country these days. Last year, I discussed the space between the skeletons and the trees — Thanksgiving gets crowded out. We are a people with a flair for the sensational. Both Halloween and Christmas fulfill that for many. Do we know what to do with a much quieter holiday with less fanfare? Is it a necessary holiday anyway?

Have we forgotten that the days of our nation’s conception were moments of gratitude — surviving fatal winters, accepting help and advice from native Americans, and being in a place that promised many freedoms? We have. But we are not alone. Did you know that it was not until 1863 — the middle of the Civil War — that a lady named Sara Josepha Hale implored the current president to establish a nationally recognized day of Thanksgiving on the same day for all states? Guess which president conceded to her requests for a day of common unity built on gratitude and gathering — President Lincoln. Of course, this was amid our nation’s saddest times — with brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor. Lincoln likely was already searching for something to repair the breach, to be a balm. Mrs. Hale’s letter led him to the proclamation of a day where shared experiences of gratitude and acknowledging a reliance upon an Almighty Power was an excellent place to start. He was right.

Would President Lincoln remind us of the same need for this moment of shared gratitude and gathering this Thanksgiving? We need it more today than most of us realize or would concede to. Already, I see Christians and non-Christians alike spewing hate and disgust at those across the aisle, or more closely — down the street — because of differently expressing their right and privilege to vote. I have even read resolutions not to share Thanksgiving with those of differing opinions.

How does something like gratitude help us? In the grand design of life and history, it brings us all to an understanding of who we are, or more importantly, who we are not. It recognizes we are all vulnerable and dependent on someone, though many do not yet know Who that is. For the Christian, the gratitude goes outward and upward. All we have is a gift from above. Even all the things we have that we do not want are gifts if they bring us to a place of humility, contentment, and recognition that we can live through any season or election result that comes our way. That’s worth giving thanks for.

Ashlie Miller and her family enjoy friendsgiving and Thanksgiving meals (and day-after sandwiches!) in Concord, Salisbury and N.C. beaches. You may contact her at mrs.ashliemiller@gmail.com.