50+ Lifestyles

PUBLISHER’S CORNER

November Thoughts

By Eloise Graham

During a previous presidential election year, I wrote an article titled “Voting, Veterans and Vittles.” Well, it’s November again. It’s another presidential election again. Voting, veterans and vittles come to mind again.

Voting

Let’s start with voting! Voting is a privilege, a right, a freedom, an opportunity, and an obligation. Three amendments have been added to our Constitution: (1) the Fifteenth Amendment (1870) gives all citizens, regardless of their race, the right to vote, (2) the Nineteenth Amendment (1920) gives any U.S. citizen the right to vote regardless of their sex, (3) the Twenty-sixth Amendment (1971) gives 18 year-olds and older the right to vote.

Let us remember that the neighbor next door on November 4, 2024 is the same person that lives next door on November 6, 2024 (or whenever the election is called.) Let us all join together to be thankful that we have this right to vote. Some countries don’t have this right. Let us all join together to make America the best it can be. We are unique with our diversified heritage and can bring out the best in each other. Let us all join together to be reunited. Many peoples in one land making “the American Dream” a reality.

Veterans

Now let’s recognize the veterans. On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, the Armistice with Germany went into effect. This day was originally called Armistice Day. In 1954, this day was renamed Veterans Day – a day to honor all veterans from all branches of service in all wars. Since 2001, many communities have added police, firefighters and EMTs to be honored.

These service-oriented people and their families have sacrificed much to give our country the freedoms we enjoy. They fought for the homeland, for the freedom of its people. Let us give thanks to them.

Vittles

We finish the month with the Thanksgiving meal. This year Thanksgiving Day is November 28, somewhat late in the month, but it is the fourth Thursday. The chosen date for Thanksgiving has changed some throughout the past 400 years. The first Thanksgiving, a harvest feast, was in 1621 between the Native Americans, the Wampanoag People, and the English colonists, the Pilgrims. The harvest feast lasted for two or three days. For many years, the Thanksgiving Feast was celebrated at various times in the fall after the harvest. President Lincoln decided all of the states should set aside one day to give thanks. On October 3, 1863, he issued a “Thanksgiving Proclamation” to officially set aside the last Thursday of November as a national day for Thanksgiving. In 1939, President F.D. Roosevelt thought Thanksgiving should be the third Thursday to give people more time to do Christmas shopping, stimulating the U.S. economy. After two years of much pressure from many, he signed the bill to make the fourth Thursday of the month the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Celebrate this month with love, compassion and thankfulness. Count your blessings for all that you do have.