The Death of Thanksgiving

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I enjoy Thanksgiving. It is a time to remember those who came to this continent and survived their first winter. Over the years that event has evolved to morning parades followed by football games while fighting over the last bread roll with relatives you see once a year. The joy of getting paid not to work. But all that has now changed. And the culprit’s responsible for this are everywhere.

Being in my mid 40’s I have seen a great deal of lifestyle changes over the years. The one that went to a quick death was having Sunday off. It used to be that grocery store and other types of businesses were closed on Sunday. That changed as a few grocery stores started opening up after Sunday service. It didn’t take long for other stores to join in to eventually every form of business turned Sunday into another work day. The culprits responsible for this enjoyed it with glee.

Soon other holidays began to change as well because of these people. Easter was the last holiday where all stores were closed. People went to church, had cook outs and spent time with their family. Now it’s just another work day. There used to be other holidays that kids had a day off from school and paid holidays for the working people. But all that changed. Holidays merged together. Labor Day is now a regular work day as others were downgraded in importance to a simple memo on a calendar.

Now with Christmas being the last major holiday where individuals and families are truly home together to celebrate this day as Thanksgiving has fallen into the category of just another work day. Grocery stores are opened to nearly 6 PM. Even some department stores are doing the same thing. And if grocery stores and department stores are opened means that vendors have to work to service those stores.

And on this 2012 Thanksgiving many of those department stores like Target and Wal-Mart are ether staying open all day or opening up at 6 PM Thanksgiving Evening. Many grumblings have gone out with threats of a strike from Wal-Mart employees as Target employees are not that far behind. Employees basically have an early Thanksgiving dinner with their families, if possible, then try to get some sleep as they will be required to work all through the night and into the next day.

It should be noted that several years ago a grocery store chain called Winn-Dixie had the idea of staying open on Christmas day. They did very little to no business that day as that publicity stunt cost the company plenty. Public reaction was swift and by the following year the grocery store company closed down all their stores with the exception of a few in Florida.  

The ones responsible for grocery and department stores staying open this Thanksgiving Day, for turning Easter and Labor Day into another work day, the ones who convinced store owners to open up business on Sunday are the same people who stand in front of stores complaining about having to wait to get in. The customers.

These people want everything at their disposal. They were given stores and restaurants that stay open 24 hours. They turned Easter into a day of special shopping deals as kids dye eggs and eat chocolate rabbits. Christians can be found walking the malls and department stores as this holiday gets watered down more and more each year.

Grocery and department stores have bent over backwards for these people. And now as another holiday is going down in flames these stores continue in giving what the customers want. These same customers, who some of them are vendors; now have to adjust to working on another holiday, as others people are finding out that their place of employment is staying open for the holiday.

So as grocery stores are closing up Thanksgiving evening, look at the people inside the stores or banging on the doors to get in five minutes after the store closes. These are the ones who are making everybody else go to work. Their wanting has been given to them at the cost of our holiday.