Is Thanksgiving Going Away

I cooked the turkey, mashed the potatoes, dressed the dressing, merged every table in the house to make one long beautiful setting for the feast and shared my day with family and friends, and when it was all over, hubby and I (like millions of others) took to the streets in search of hot items on what's now called 'Gray Thursday'.

I don't know who coined the term, but maybe it's gray for a reason. Gray is the color of sorrow but in some cultures it symbolizes responsibility and conservative practicality. Whichever meaning you choose it could be applicable to this blog.

After returning from a victorious Gray Thursday/Black Friday spree I watched the news the next morning and kind of got a kick out of looking at live shots of people still in the hustle and bustle of it all. I even gave Micah a high five, because as usual, the hot items that we wanted to get seemed only to be hot to us (there was no mad dash to buy the things that were on our list so we were in and out of our two friendly retailers within minutes). However, what made my victory dance turn into a moment of bewilderment was the fact that I heard one financial analysts say that the success of Gray Thursday may mean the end of Thanksgiving as we know it.

Is that possible? Could a holiday be obliterated because of a three pot crock pot, a pre-paid cell phone or cheap bath towels? Have we come to the point in our lives where all we can think about at this time of the year are bargains? Maybe. For some of us (and one shopper said it best during his interview) "We have to save a few pennies" but for others it's the sheer enjoyment of the madness and a time to stock up for self. NBC 10's anchor Tim Furlong interviewed a few young ladies who had bags of loot from a famous lingerie store and when he asked if they had gotten gift bargains, they all said "No! We got stuff for ourselves!"

I admit I got caught up in the frenzy, even though our holiday shopping was completed in October but to do away with Thanksgiving? Not hardly. Even I need a reminder of what Thanksgiving really means.

Come with me for a moment while I put on my teacher hat. If we interpret the meaning of the word thanksgiving based on its cultural definition we tend to embrace the dictionary definition and apply it to the holiday. Merriam Webster defines thanksgiving as the act of giving thanks; grateful acknowledgment of benefits or favor. If we look at the Biblical meaning of the word it is revealed that thanksgiving is not an extemporaneous or spontaneous expression of thanks for a good deed, but it has to do with our spiritual attitude toward life. It has nothing to do with outward expressions but an introspective look at ourselves. In other words we live a life of thanksgiving and it becomes a daily expression of His life. From a spiritual perspective (and not everyone is a believer but follow me), I believe that God wants us to be thankful in all things and to rejoice in both the pain and sorrow of our life. Thanksgiving isn't a question of whether we are going to give thanks or not, but a question of what spirit we will allow to rule us (Netbiblestudy.com, 2012).

Now maybe that's a bit much and I'm stealing your holiday shopping joy, but I think you can agree with me and Netbiblestudy.com. Think back to October, July, March and even February of this year? How many times did you give thanks? How many times we you reminded of how blessed you were? Was there a turkey on the table? Were you camped out in a parking lot waiting for doors to open at your favorite retailer? Probably not. So in actuality, we've probably all live a spiritually thankful life but for some reason, that balance is taken away because of the official start to the holiday shopping season.

The major retailers probably won't read this blog from a mom in Delaware and change their marketing habits for the 2013 holiday season, but we can all be more introspective and give ourselves that little pinch before we get swept away in the hoopla that will probably continue to begin on Thanksgiving Thursday at 8:00 p.m. when those doors open to priceless bargains.

 

Have a wonderful holiday season!!!

 

100%

Is being Black and Articulate an Anomaly?

I listened to a short interview with actor Keith Powell (cast member on NBC’s “30 Rock”) and was immediately able to connect with some of what he had to say, especially his comments about sounding ‘black enough’.  I can recall the first time that it was brought to my attention that I was articulate.  I actually went to interview for a job and when I arrived I was greeted with “Wow! I thought you were white!  You were so articulate over the phone.”  At the time, I was young and didn’t take offense to it.  In fact, I took pride in the statement and relished in the fact that I had worked so hard not necessarily to ‘sound white’ but to sound professional as a new entrant into the job market.

Oddly enough, prior to that, the issue of being black, smart, and articulate wasn’t one.  I wasn’t called a sell out or told that I sounded/acted white because I was grouped in with the smart kids.  Again; no real problem for me because I was smart.  I got good grades and took school seriously.  It wasn’t until I got to college that people (probably the group of students in search of their black identity at a traditionally white school) questioned the commitment to the black race by those who didn’t necessarily associate with all of the cultural norms of the black community; including embracing what was called Ebonics.

As I ventured into the academic environment, I began to study something called code-switching, which I believe many African Americans whose lives are intrinsically woven between their cultural roots and a rich and demanding professional life become experts in.  Code-switching is defined as the practice of selecting or altering linguistic elements so as to contextualize talk in interaction. This contextualization may relate to local discourse practices, such as turn selection or various forms of bracketing, or it may make relevant information beyond the current exchange, including knowledge of society and diverse identities.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid took heat for making the statement (2010) that President Obama lacked ‘negro dialect’ and the comment shined light on the practice of code-switching, when one alters his or her communication style to closer identify with the audience or setting he/she is in at a given moment.  While some were shocked at the comment and thought it to be racists, for many African Americans, such choices about how to talk and present yourself are normal. 

Somewhere between high school and college and the first job interview many of us find that sounding proper, educated, and capable is a necessity…not sounding white.  It doesn’t mean that you’ve surrendered your “black card” or (any other race card for that matter) it just means that you’ve been blessed with the understanding that the way you joke around, fraternize and talk with your peers may not be appropriate for the boardroom or any other professional environment.  The downside is that unfortunately if you employ dialect or vernacular associated with urban culture there is also the assumption that you are uneducated, incapable, and more ignorant than most. 

Historically African Americans have lived in two worlds and have learned to navigate them, simply by code-switching.  Some may even view the ability to shift linguistic styles as a survival skill that blacks use to counter stereotypes and discrimination in a historically dominated white male society.

As an educator, I am an advocate from presenting your best professional self.  I want students to do this through every form of communication in which they engage.  Whether it is a simple Tweet, Facebook post, a question asked or answered in class or a simple conversation during office hours.  Get into the practice of using correct English and grammar.  Learn how to carry on a conversation with substance and style and know when to deploy tactics such as code-switching. Like Powell said in his interview, it’s time that we move forward and change the dialogue about how we actually dialogue.

 

See the complete interview at:

http://www.aol.com/video/youve-got-keith-powell/517533523/