Thanksgiving: Enjoying Family Traditions

We were just talking about having a happy Thanksgiving enjoying family traditions. It started me thinking, Plymouth Plantation in Massachusetts, the Macy’s Parade, and Norman Rockwell’s painting, “Freedom from Want”, all stand as iconic images of the day Americans celebrate Thanksgiving.

Pictures of early settlers gathered together helped establish a tradition for families and friends to join with one another and give thanks for the good in their lives.

Rockwell’s depiction of a family safe from the throes of war, coming together for a shared meal, projects an image everyone around the world should be able to experience. This was the objective of Rockwell’s work created in response to president Roosevelt’s 1941 speech known as his “Four Freedom’s Speech.”

And of course the famed Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, with it’s animated character balloons floating high above the crowds’ heads on blustery Thanksgiving mornings, shows us a more light-hearted side of the day.

Each image carries with it a tradition, giving us the feeling that generation after generation our customs of sharing the past and looking to the future with hope will continue. They show us the importance of family and prompt us to include more than just our biological family members in our celebrations.

This year, try adding a new tradition to your Thanksgiving day celebration by writing down one thing you are grateful for relative to each person at your Thanksgiving table and share it with them that day. Or, find gratitude quotes online, print them and give one to each member at your table and ask them to read them aloud. Here are a few quotes to get you started…

The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving. H. U. Westermayer

He who is not satisfied with a little is not satisfied with allot. Greek Proverb

Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action. W.J. Cameron

Have a Happy Thanksgiving enjoying family traditions!

As a family-run business, JumpSport values the opportunity to work with families throughout the year, supplying them with safe, high-quality backyard trampolines that give friends and families a reason to have fun together.

Each member of the JumpSport team wishes you a safe and family-filled Thanksgiving.