Happy Turkey-Day! I have to be honest, I spent my entire childhood and even the majority of my adult life having no fuckin’ idea WHY Canada celebrates thanksgiving. I mean, I get why the United States does it; it’s part of their history and an integral part of their story as to how they became a country (although not the greatest story, depending on who you talk to. But I didn’t think we had anything like that here in Canada. All throughout my childhood, I enjoyed the benefit of getting a day off from school on Thanksgiving without ever really knowing the reason behind it. And believe it or not, I would come to realize the reason for this holiday from the most unlikely source…
Believe it or not, I learned of the origins of Canadian Thanksgiving from the sitcom, How I Met Your Mother. In a particular episode, Robin Scherbatsky, played by Canadian-born actress Cobie Smulders, explains that Canadian Thanksgiving is the day of celebration of a explorer Martin Frobisher’s attempt at locating the Northwest Passage. Ironically, I’ve heard of this Northwest Passage throughout most of my life. This Frobisher character, not so much. Anyway, he apparently celebrated and have thanks for the first time on their ship in 1578 and the existing government decided in 1859 to celebrate it as a holiday.
Who knew that despite the comedic nature of the scene, it was based on actual information? Anyway, I hope y’all are having a good weekend and enjoying the extra day off from work. It’s been a nice weekend of spending time with my wife and toddler, Alexander. This afternoon, we’ll be travelling to grab my first-born son, Nathan, from his grandmother with whom he’s spent the whole weekend with. As much as I love my son, I have to admit that it’s been a quieter weekend. But I’m very much looking forward to having him back. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! ☯️
The Blogging Buddhist 