This week we celebrate Thanksgiving with our families or friends. Some of us watch football, some of us watch parades, and some of us watch for sales on our favorite items. Some of us probably do all these things. While these are all trappings of the holiday, what we really celebrate is our common humanity.
The myth of Thanksgiving relates that in 1620, Pilgrim ancestors escaped the Old World and braved a treacherous journey to find freedom on this continent. They landed at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts where they settled on the edge of a vast wilderness and nearly perished until they were rescued by generous natives who taught them to survive in this new place. A year later, these Pilgrims sat down to a feast of Thanksgiving in gratitude to the natives who welcomed them.
The facts of the story are much more complicated, and we now recognize that some of our American history has caused pain and displacement. However, though the facts create complicated feelings, the lesson behind Thanksgiving is not. To live well is to walk the world with both an appreciation for what others give to us and what we give to each other. The compounding effect of “thanks” and “giving” should not be lost.
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln, fresh from seeing the horrors of Gettysburg, declared Thanksgiving a national holiday. His hope, amid the darkest times of division in our country’s history, was to reframe our national consciousness through a day of reflection and to remind ourselves what we mean to each other. Whether we differ in politics, prestige, or pocketbooks, every one of us matters. Every one of us can give thanks to another, and every one of us can be more giving to each other.
This year, our Los Angeles Jewish community certainly needs our giving. Did you know that 19% of the Jewish community has trouble making ends meet? This year alone, our work with our partners has served over 65,000 clients, including 40,000 people who receive groceries weekly, 7,500 folks through crisis intervention, and 2,500 frail older adults whose quality of life we enhance. Our work together as a community to help those who are vulnerable is just one way our Federation and our partners make the world a better place.
May this Thanksgiving bring you joy and inspire all of us to transform our deepest sensibilities into a better world for all.
Happy Thanksgiving,
R’ Noah Farkas
