Thanksgiving has officially been a holiday in Canada since 1957. For most of us it is a time for family get togethers and good food. Historically, Thanksgiving has been celebrated in Canada since 1872 when on April 5, 1872, some say a celebration of thanks was observed as a civic holiday, in recognition of the recovery of the Prince of Wales from a serious injury, although it quickly became a celebration of the harvest. After this time the holiday was held late October to early November until it was finally declared in 1957 that Thanksgiving be held the second Monday in October.

For many of us Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on the bounty in our lives. Not just for the harvest as it historically has been, but for what we as Canadians have in our lives. Things we take for granted here like clean water, shelter, food on our table, access to public education for our children, beautiful, clean,  wide open spaces are all things we should be thankful for on this holiday.

Those of us lucky enough to have our families close enough to be together will probably cook a traditional turkey dinner. In 2013, according to the Turkey Farmers of Canada 2.9 million turkeys were sold for Thanksgiving. For more interesting turkey facts check out their website here: http://www.turkeyfarmersofcanada.ca/industryStatistics/

At this time of year our gardens are looking a little worse for wear. So while we are thankful for the beautiful fall colours all around us it is a reminder that winter is on it’s way. The hard part is finding a way to be thankful for all the snow that will fall. We will think about that and maybe talk about how to enjoy winter in a future blog post. Happy Thanksgiving to you!