Paint It Black

I look inside myself and see my heart is black
I see my red door and see it has been painted black
maybe then I'll fade away and not have to face the facts
It's not easy facing up when your whole world is black
The Rolling Stones

Aaaahhhh...Black Friday. Black. Friday. Black because of the economic ramifications of everyone going shopping on one day to try and get as many, or all, of the Christmas presents done in one day. I get it. I understand.

But then again, I don't. I don't get it. Yet, I think I do.

Thanksgiving has religious roots. The pilgrims giving thanks to God for surviving a brutal winter which killed off many of their friends. Finding a way to survive through Spring and Summer and waiting for their crops to finally be harvested. I'm a realist. I realize many people don't celebrate Thanksgiving in a religious sense. But still.

We sit around with loved ones...and sometimes we invite strangers over when we know they're home alone, away from family. We give thanks and then we eat turkey and potatoes and green bean casserole and red beats (even though nobody actually likes red beats) and we eat grandma's gravy and then we eat pumpkin pie and apple pie and drink our wine and make our toasts and we go around the table, perhaps with candles flickering, and we give a reason why we are thankful.

Thanksgiving is a day where people give thanks for their God. For Grace. For Salvation. Give thanks for their families. Give thanks for their health. Give thanks for love. Give thanks for celebrating life. Give thanks for strength when they've lost a loved one. Give thanks for another day to live. Give thanks for a new life in their lives.

We. Give. Thanks.

Then...

We run to the stores, not even twenty four hours later, and we fight for every "deal" we can find. We call people "stupid" and "whores" when they get to the parking spot first. We run to the stores in the middle of the night looking to buy things--THINGS--before the next person does. Sure, we want to buy gifts that make others happy. But we are out in the wilderness hunting for "bargains," and we adhere to one rule: only the strong survive.

Just a few hours earlier we were reflecting on what is important to us. We were surrounded by the most important people in our lives. Then we drive off into the moonlit morning and surround ourselves with fellow cannibals from the tribe of materialism.

I realize that shopping together on the Friday after Thanksgiving is a tradition for many families. But what has it turned into?

What have we become?

What do we turn ourselves into?

What was it that we were thankful for again?