Mechanic Falls news

MECHANIC FALLS - Thanksgiving, that purely American celebration of feasting on turkey and cranberry sauce with family and friends, is upon us and if you are reading this, you are probably suffering from a too-bloated stomach because you gorged yourself on foods you probably don't eat any other time of year. Like stuffing. Which, by the way, has never risen above its function to be called anything else.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for this reason: it cannot be marketed. Sure, there are a few Thanksgiving cards we could send, and there are decorations with turkeys splayed on the front of napkins, but truthfully, the cards are given two feet of space to make room for the Christmas card choices, and Thanksgiving decorations are lucky to be squeezed in next to the zombie costumes and a talking Santa Claus.

You can't capitalize on thanks because it's not for sale. Gratitude is a lost art these days. Sure, we teach our kids to say please and thank-you, but beyond that what does it mean? Being polite, although good, is a shallow creek, not able to sustain much in the long run, whereas gratefulness is a deep river; there is more underneath than what is visible on the surface. Gratefulness comes with the recognition of loss, real or probable. When we value what is right in front of us, knowing that it could be gone in an instant, we are able to truly say thank you and mean it. The Pilgrims didn't intend to create a holiday. They were just grateful they'd made it through the year alive and that warranted a party.

In my life I don't want thankfulness to end up on the shelf between personal entitlement and covetousness amid a never-ending chorus of "Mine, Mine, Mine."

When Ebenezer Scrooge at the end of "A Christmas Carol" proclaimed to keep the spirit of Christmas in his heart the whole year he was essentially promising to live a grateful and generous life.

This time of year provides ample opportunity to come together for feasting and community. The Mechanic Falls Historical Society is hosting the Slowly Becoming Famous Roast Beef Community Supper on Saturday, December 4 at 4:30-6:30 p.m. The cost is $7 dollars for adults and $5 dollars for children 12 and under. The Historical Society is located at 64 Elm Street in Mechanic Falls in the former Congregational Church.

Please e-mail me at mitsou7@msn.com for story ideas or announcements of events in town. I need a two-week lead time.