A holiday in which we give thanks for the year we have had, and in traditional terms - for the harvest of the field.
It is always on the second Monday of the month of October - having been decided in 1931. Before that, it had been observed on the same day as Armistice Day - both being on November 11th.This weekend has been nice, sunny and warm. A lot different from that Thanksgiving in 1993 when it snowed and snowed, followed by the coldest winter that had been seen in these parts in years. I remember it well because it was the first year in our new house, and to see the grounds covered in snow was more like Christmas than Thanksgiving.
It has always been a family holiday with turkey, dressing, and all of those roots vegetables - potatoes, carrots, turnips, and a pumpkin or apple pie.
The dinner was usually eaten on Sunday or Monday (it was always on Sunday in my house), and the drive on Monday to my maternal grandparents (Blades) house, and to see my maternal aunts and uncles and cousins who all lived in the town of Barrington Passage, Nova Scotia.
Today, I am staying home to proof an article I have coming out on Chinese-Canadian Immigration in the early 1880s to 1900s, and then tomorrow I will go for a drive to the beautiful Gatineau Hills - which are so colourful this time of year.
So whichever way you celebrate your Thanksgiving weekend, may it be a pleasant one!
And to our American cousins, we wish you the same, just a bit earlier. Enjoy the playoffs!
