Thursday 27 November 2008

Happy Thanksgiving, America!


"The year that is drawing towards its close,
has been filled with the blessings
of fruitful fields and healthful skies.

To these bounties,
which are so constantly enjoyed
that we are prone to forget
the source from which they come,
others have been added,
which are of so extraordinary a nature,

that they cannot fail
to penetrate and soften even the heart
which is habitually insensible
to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God.

"It has seemed to me fit and proper
that they should be solemnly,
reverently and gratefully acknowledged
as with one heart and voice
by the whole American people.

I do therefore invite my fellow citizens
in every part of the United States,
and also those who are at sea
and those who are sojourning in foreign lands,

to set apart and observe
the last Thursday of November next,
as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise
to our beneficent Father
who dwelleth in the Heavens.

And I recommend to them that
while offering up the ascriptions
justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings,
they do also, with humble penitence
for our national perverseness and disobedience,

commend to his tender care all those
who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers
in the lamentable civil strife
in which we are unavoidably engaged,

and fervently implore
the interposition of the Almighty Hand
to heal the wounds of the nation
and to restore it as soon as may be consistent
with the Divine purpose
to the full enjoyment of peace,
harmony, tranquillity and Union."

Quoted from
"A Declaration of Thanksgiving"
Abraham Lincoln's Manifesto of Gratitude
of October 3, 1863

Clicking on the images
will transport you to
a miriad of things
I am grateful for.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!


*


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32 comments:

  1. happy thanksgiving to u too..must thank you for these pics :)

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  2. Happy Thanksgiving to you, too, Merisi! What a thought provoking photo display today. Blessing to you and yours.
    ~Allie

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  3. Congratulations on a beautiful post. It captures and conveys so much.



    disguisism

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  4. That was beautiful Merisi, and sobering. So much to be thankful for and yet...so much ugliness that man has, and continues to create.

    Happy Thanksgiving day.

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  5. Thank you so much. I have great hope that our new President will help our country and restore the positive feeling that other countries used to have of the United States. The last 8 years under the outgoing President have been such a disaster on so many fronts...I am thankful that this won't continue next year...

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  6. Happy Thanksgiving! These are beautiful photos. God bless.

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  7. Happy Thanksgiving to the American part of you :-)
    Your photos are great.

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  8. These are beautiful photos!

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  9. At last I can feel good about being American again - now we are heading back --we hope --to what the best of America could and should be.
    American ideals are wonderful --I would that we could live up to them!
    HAppy Thanksgiving.

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  10. Thank you for those beautiful photos, and for letting lots of folks know more about what is behind our Thanksgiving holiday.

    It is very good to be truly grateful for our blessings each and every day, and to help others have even more blessings.

    Best wishes.

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  11. super series of photos.

    Gill in Canada

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  12. What a wonderful sereis of images. I just want to pick all of that fruit and make pies.

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  13. Beautiful reminder of being thankful! Thank you!

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  14. Thank you Merisi. This is touching and the photos are stunning.
    I have so much to be thankful for. My heart is full of gratitude today.

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  15. the first one was great for skywatch.

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  16. Thank You for the post. Right now I'm the stuff one! Just finshed my piece of pumpkin pie.

    www.thequietone.net

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  17. Happy Thanksgiving to you, Merisi!

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  18. thank you for sharing Lincoln's words and the lovely series of photographs....and a happy thanksgiving to you as well.

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  19. Great post, Merisi! Happy Thanksgiving to you!
    Kind greetings from Vienna!

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  20. Gday Merisi, lovely verse to match the beautiful photo's..

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  21. Thank you Merisi

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  22. Hello again, yes, you have the correct name for that big dog, Beethoven, it is. Thank you for your comments.

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  23. Lovely post! I have much to be thankful for and that includes you and your lovely blogs.

    Bussi,
    Paz

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  24. Do you have Thanksgiving Day in Austria?

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  25. Happy T-G!
    Will you make a pumpkin pie?
    xoxo

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  26. Dear readers:
    Looks like last Saturday I stayed out in the cold too long, because the cold took ahold of me, and put me out of commision for 4 days. I am up and running again, and spent Friday preparing for our Thanksgiving feast on Saturday (Thursday was no holiday here, Thanksgiving is a strictly American one).

    Thank you all so much for your kind comments, I appreciate them very much!

    A wonderful weekend to you all! :-)

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  27. Happy Belated Thanksgiving! Your quotation from the Declaration of Independence reminded me of what Thanksgiving should be. I am thankful for your wonderful blog that always puts a smile on face.

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  28. I'm thankful for you!
    Hope you are feeling better.

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  29. This is my first visit to your lovey site. The photos are wonderful & your words so well spoken. Thank you for a beautiful post.

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  30. What a perfect quote for Thanksgiving this year. I'm glad you got to celebrate it with your family over the weekend (and hope you are feeling all recovered now).

    Beautiful, beautiful post.

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  31. I'm a little late, Merisi, but this is my favorite Thanksgiving post of all. Beautiful.
    Catherine

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  32. Now that the 2 parties are over and the 7 house guests are snug in their own beds, I have time to enjoy this. Love the Declaration of Thanksgiving, going to use that at my home next year for something, not sure what yet. And I had a chance to see all the things you are grateful for Merisi, what a neat way to share.

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