It’s that time of year again. Every now and then, we like to take a moment to remember this oft neglected holiday.

The older we get, the more we have to be thankful for. Thanksgiving is a great opportunity to think about all the great things we can show gratitude for, the least of which, is having lived long enough to be considered a senior.

So this Thanksgiving, lets remember to look a little beyond the turkey, and do a little internal reflection.

What Thanksgiving Means To You

History

I for one, find Thanksgiving to be an incredibly interesting holiday. Its roots go back long before it was ever declared a national holiday by President Lincoln. George Washington wasn’t even the first one to declare its celebration when he suggested it.

Most of us remember the story of the pilgrims and native Americans, but that wasn’t the beginning of it, either.

Thanksgiving had been celebrated for a long time as a harvest festival, back when a community’s entire livelihood revolved around a successful season of crops. Religious institutions also deemed it a time for reflection.

Today, we have many traditions that have moved away from the older reasons for celebrating this holiday. Many of us still celebrate by feasting, but the success of this year’s harvest usually have little to do with it. For that matter, religious gratitude doesn’t always play a significant role in many of its observers’ lives either.

From popular Thanksgiving day parades, sponsored by large spendy companies, to sports games, everyone today celebrates this holiday based on things that apply more directly to them. Even curious traditions, like the presidential pardoning of a Thanksgiving turkey each year has gained national spotlights.

Make the most of your Thanksgiving

This year, whether you’re throwing a big party for your family, with turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and all the rest of the fixing, or whether you’re scouring the ads for those super discounted deals that go for sale the next day, or in some cases, that same day, take a little time to look up some history. See why we celebrate this holiday.

Go ahead and celebrate it however you like, but you might find that it has a broad and deep past that will interest you. I know it peaked my interest. Maybe it will give you the opportunity to reflect on your life, past, present, and future.

Even when we feel as if we have little to be grateful for, a little time to sit, reflect, and write down many of the good things that we can be grateful for, can usher in a boon of good feelings that will really ring in the spirit of this holiday, whatever that form may take for you.

So this year, don’t just let Thanksgiving be solely for the purpose of beating yourself up over a broken diet. And if you find some great things to be happy about, share them with your family and friends.

As Utah’s top builder of 55+ communities, we know all about the benefits of including others in our lives. That’s what we do. We build communities that are more social, fun, and inclusive than your typical subdivision.

So go ahead, enjoy this year’s festivities and make this year’s Thanksgiving, one to remember.

From your friends at Leisure Villas.