When this time of year rolls around, people are spending their time balancing out their checkbooks in order to buy gifts for that special person. Yes, Christmas is just around the corner with its amazing red and green lights, cheesy cliché Christmas movies, and families unwrapping their Christmas presents. We can’t wait to feel the Christmas spirit, but before we sing and dance to our favorite Christmas tunes, we first have to experience America’s two favorite holidays, Thanksgiving and Black Friday.
Thanksgiving: the holiday where people give thanks for what they have received and give blessing to God and the world for the lovely possessions that they have acquired during the year. The “First Thanksgiving,” was celebrated by the pilgrims as they were blessed by God because God gave them a new world. The event was celebrated in three days with pilgrims and Native Americans. As centuries have passed, the Thanksgiving holiday has changed. The holiday is still about giving thanks for the blessings that we have, although Americans have primarily focused on the idea of eating a huge feast and enjoying some great football. The holiday began to become a contest of who is going to eat the most food? Or which parent makes the best stuffing?
Thanksgiving is one of the best holidays of the year, but it has gained most of its popularity because of the day after it, Black Friday. Black Friday, the one day during the year where we can buy anything for half price. This “holiday” was created unofficially by departments stores such as Macy’s. In the early 20th century, an unwritten rule was created by department stores. The rule was that stores couldn’t start doing Christmas advertisements until after Thanksgiving. According to blackfriday.com, “The term “Black Friday” was coined in the 1960s to mark the kickoff to the Christmas shopping season. “Black” refers to stores moving from the “red” to the “black,” back when accounting records were kept by hand, and red ink indicated a loss, and black a profit.”
Black Friday is the day when individuals forget that they just gave thanks for the possessions they have on Thanksgiving and wrestle their fellow American for a new computer that was on sale from the hours of 12 a.m. to 2 a.m. As we reach black Friday, people forget the morals that they have built their wholes lives in order to buy either the last season of Breaking Bad for $9.99 or step on others as the race for their favorite Apple products. Black Friday is everyone’s favorite retail holiday, but how far are we willing to break our morals just so we can get something on sale?
We have obviously forgotten the purpose of Thanksgiving weekend. Thanksgiving Day is all about giving thanks for what we have so the only request that many employees that work on Thanksgiving ask for is a day where you could just be thankful for what you have and wait until Friday to tear each other apart. Don’t give into Black Thursday, say no and enjoy your lovely dinner and American football with your family. Also, remember to give thanks for what you have and always be blessed that you have made it this far.
Happy Thanksgiving!