I've been observing a trend that's developed over the past few years. We see everyone jump straight out of the Halloween craze and right into the Christmas season. While I shamelessly admit that I've been watching non-stop hallmark Christmas specials, we are all collectively overlooking one of my personal favorite holidays: Thanksgiving. What has changed in the last decade that has made everyone forget about this glorious day of guiltless gluttony and non-stop football? For a country with a track record like ours, you'd think that a holiday dedicated to eating and laying around the house with your loved ones would be a staple of our society.

Regardless of its stance in our society now, I believe it's high time that we begin to lead the charge of re-establishing Thanksgiving as a relevant and important American holiday. Pushing aside its actual historic importance and the miraculous story of our settlers facing the odds and establishing one of the greatest nations on the planet, Thanksgiving falls in a time that many hold near and dear. It's in the sweet spot of November just before the frost comes in and turns the pleasant cool temperatures into a frozen wasteland. The trees are in full autumn coloring, families come together, and food is cooked in surplus. Thanksgiving has more sentiment than just an American holiday and is almost a celebration of the season of fall itself. Why people are so quick to abandon the #fallislife movement is something I'll never understand.

Thanksgiving also provides something else that we seem to overlook. It holds us as an example to the rest of the free world. We are a country that is blessed with great wealth, prosperity, and opulence and yet does something that few other nations do. Ours was the First Nation to establish a holiday dedicated to giving thanks for what we have. I beleive that such a fact speaks volumes about the moral character and values our nation holds dear. It is a shame that in our modern culture, such a holiday is beginning to be overlooked. It is a holiday based on simplicity and is dedicated to eating a large meal and spending time with your family. There is no holiday shopping, no excess decorating, and now massive planned parties for it. The beautiful simplicity of the holiday is all a part of its charm.

Hidden under the veil of Christmas commercialism, Thanksgiving is one of our nation's great overlooked traditions and should be given the recognition it deserves. Christmas has its own season, and will come in due time, so for now let's remember to enjoy Thanksgiving and the things it celebrates.