One thing that I can't stand during the holidays is that people seem to skip right over Thanksgiving and jump into Christmas. Though the memes created for this are hilarious, I think that people skim over this holiday due to the fact that there is really nothing linked with receiving anything when it comes to this holiday. This brought the question of "Why do people seem to not care as much about Thanksgiving?" to my attention.
There is a lot of distaste when it comes to Thanksgiving. This is something I have never really thought about. For me, Thanksgiving was always just a time for my family to be together and enjoy each others company with good food. But there is a dark attachment when it comes to the true meaning behind the holiday.
According to some research that I have done the holiday was created because "Massachusetts governor John Winthrop called for a day of thanksgiving to celebrate the massacre of more than 700 Pequot men, women and children in 1637."
I am being completely honest when I say that this is something I never knew before researching for this article. It is something that is skimmed over in school. I was never taught this and never felt the need to look into it. I don't feel the need to defend why my family and I celebrate the holiday even though half of our family descend from Native American tribes. It's honestly no one's business what we do but I understand why some people make the choice to not observe this holiday. I also agree that this is something that should be taught in schools because small children are still taught to believe that Thanksgiving was a day that the pilgrims and Native Americans came together in peace and harmony when in fact it was the exact opposite.
There are a couple other theories as to why people skip over the Thanksgiving season. One being the theory I mentioned before which is that it is the season of giving and not taking. The other being the theory that it is the lack of music to go along with the holiday. There is plenty of Halloween music, and we all know every Christmas song written to man. But there are no songs that I have ever heard that have to do with Thanksgiving.
Despite these other theories it seems that the one that many people who do not celebrate the holiday claim to be their reasoning is the history of the holiday.
Thanksgiving is also considered one of the "Loneliest Holidays." This is apparently because the expectation for closeness among family can backfire and tensions that exist can rise. There is also the issue of people who cannot reach family during the holiday in one day. Most places of employment only allow one day for their employees to take off. If your family takes more than 24 hours to get to there is no way they are going to be able to get to anyone. This causes some people to spend the day alone.
Most articles that I have found about why people skip over thanksgiving are titles "Why Thanksgiving is Bullshit" or "12 Reasons We Hate Thanksgiving." And I will admit, most of them have to do with the history of the holiday itself.
I completely understand why people would not want observe this holiday. I do it because it was the way I grew up and my celebration never had any connection to "The First Thanksgiving." If you know someone who does not observe the holiday don't make them feel like there is something wrong with them fro thinking that way. They have their right to observe or not observe any holiday they choose to depending on their beliefs. Their choice should be respected just as you would want them to respect your choice to celebrate Thanksgiving.
