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Having just celebrated Thanksgiving across the United States, I’ve been reminded of what makes this holiday truly special. If you’re an American who’s grown up with the holiday your whole life, it’s easy to take it for granted. Speaking as an immigrant, let me tell you: there’s something genuinely magical about a country setting aside a national day simply to give thanks.
Most nations have a national day, and like America’s July 4th, they’re often about celebrating independence.
France’s Bastille Day marks the occasion a mob stormed the Bastille (and committed all manner of atrocities). Japan’s marks the ascension of an emperor. England, Ireland and Scotland have national days for their patron saints – with the Scots sneaking in an extra national occasion, Burns Night, when they raise a glass or three to the poet Robert Burns.
Yet, I can’t think of any country besides America that dedicates a national holiday purely to gratitude. That, to me, says something beautiful about America.
Thanksgiving may have started as an English-style harvest festival – when getting the crops in before winter was literally a matter of life and death – but it has become something uniquely American: a day to gather with loved ones, count our blessings, and say thank you for the privilege of living in this country. As a relatively recent arrival, I find the tradition uplifting.
Here are just a few of the things I found myself especially grateful for this year:
- For America itself
Every single day feels like Thanksgiving to me. I’ve now been in this country for 1,794 days, and I still don’t think I’ve woken up once without a quiet “Wow! I’m in America!”
- For the astonishing welcome my family has received
Five years ago this week, I was starting to pack up in London, about to move to Mississippi – with my family to follow later. I arrived with only two suitcases, but we’ve been so warmly embraced since stepping off the ‘plane. People here didn’t just tolerate us – they opened their arms, their homes, and their hearts.
- For Mississippi
This state is on the rise. In the five years I’ve lived here, there’s been more economic growth than in the previous fifteen combined. Drive around nearly any corner of Mississippi today and you’ll see good things happening.
- For the Mississippi Center for Public Policy
We’re a small team, but we’re happy warriors who punch way above our weight. Team MCPP has helped deliver a string of major free-market reforms that are making life better for families across the state. I’m proud to be part of it.
- For American football
I regret the decades I spent not knowing this sport existed. From high school Friday night lights to college games to even the NFL, no other game I know is as exhilarating. No other game I know can turn in an instant.
- For you
If you’re reading this, you’re one of the more than 80,000 people who subscribe to our newsletter. None of the wins we celebrate would be possible without your encouragement, your ideas, and your support. So, from the bottom of my heart: thank you. You make everything we do worthwhile.
As we look ahead to a new year, thank you—from a grateful immigrant in a grateful state, in the greatest republic on earth.
Douglas Carswell is the President and CEO of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy
MageeNews.com is the online news source for Simpson and surrounding counties as well as the state of Mississippi.
