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11/18/2023 9:23:03 PM
Planting a garden and reaping its harvest are among the many things to be grateful for.
Think Gratitude
America: Thanksgiving (the fourth Thursday of November) is a time for gratitude. The holiday has roots back to 1620 and the landing of the Mayflower. As well as being a day to remember contributions from Native Americans that helped the Pilgrims survive, it is a celebration of appreciation for the bounty of the earth. It is a happy occasion to join with family and friends, divorced from the stress of daily life.
Related to our Thanksgiving is a celebration that takes place in Leiden, Netherlands, in remembrance of the Pilgrims who lived there before leaving for the New World. The city in the Dutch Republic had permitted Pilgrims to practice their religion there without being hassled. After trying to adjust to Dutch society, they left for the New World due to a lack of education, harsh working conditions, and a potential war with Inquisitional Spain. Leiden's annual Thanksgiving celebration takes place at Pieterskerk, a Gothic church that has the grave of one of the Pilgrim leaders.
Listening to the news, it is easy to forget that there is much to be thankful for. I am grateful to have food on my table and cherish the friends and family who fill my life with good cheer. For families yet on pilgrimages undertaken due to poverty, war, or natural disasters, gratitude is more difficult to achieve. Yet, they, too, are filled with hope for a new beginning. Following are some of the ways countries celebrate the harvest and give thanks for abundance.
Canada: Jour de l'Action de Grace - (second Monday in October) Canada's first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1578 when English explorer Martin Frobisher's crew gave thanks in Newfoundland for a successful journey to North America. Their feast is similar to ours, a three-day weekend with parades, a Canadian Football League doubleheader, and a dinner with turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, and pumpkin pie.
Korea: Chuseok (25th day of August, lunar calendar) is a festival with roots dating back to 2000 years ago when Korea was an agrarian society. Legend relates that the ancient king, Silla, held a month-long weaving competition, treating the winning team with food, drinks, and gifts from the losing team. Today, families gather in a bonding activity a night before the celebration to prepare rice cakes and share presents. Spam is a standard gift popular among Koreans.
UK: London's Harvest Festival (October--days differ), a relatively new festival that started in 1998, showcases livestock, horticulture, and home products. Competitions are held for the animal most like its handler, the most pleasantest pig, the best goat beard, the best animal portrait, and more. Celebrations are held in churches, schools, pubs, and even barns where participants sing hymns, pray, and decorate event halls with baskets of fruit and food. Lavish meals featuring several types of meats, vegetables, puddings, tarts, and ale are accompanied by songs, drinks, and games. The Royal Horticulture Society organizes the festival.
Germany: Erntedankfest is a rural festival thousands of years old that celebrates the harvest. There is no set date, but festivities are held between mid-September through October in various communities, especially in rural areas. Christian and Protestant churches celebrate with a service, a parade, music, feasting, and the crowning of a Harvest Queen. It is primarily a religious holiday for fun, food, and Thanksgiving.
Ghana: The Homowo Festival commemorates a time when the Ga tribe in Ghana had no food to harvest because of infertile soil. Starving people had no choice but to wait for the rains to come again and the famine to end. In remembrance of the famine, the capital city, Accra, enforces a noise ban and prohibits fishing in lagoons for a month. The silence ends when the rainy season begins. The celebration starts with a church service that lifts the ban. Harvest feasts and gaiety follow.
China: Chung Chi (August Moon Festival--5th day of the eighth lunar cycle of the year). Families enjoy three days of public and private gatherings where they worship the moon, give thanks for the harvest, and encourage life-giving sunlight. People float paper lanterns and share mooncakes that represent unity and peace for the coming year. Mooncakes contain duck egg yolks, lotus seed paste, and sesame seeds. Chung Chi is a favorite time for matchmaking.
Argentina's month-long celebration starts with the archbishop of Mendoza sprinkling the season's first grapes with holy water and offering the vintage to God. Crowds line the streets afterward to watch parades with regional floats with competing beauty queens. Musicians, dancers, and others entertain until the Harvest Queen is chosen and fireworks begin.
Israel, a country now in mourning, is going through a horror similar to the ones inflicted on past generations of Jews. This year's Sukkot celebration ended on October 6th, the day before Hamas invaded. Sukkot is a biblical holiday known as the Feast of Tabernacles. People construct makeshift huts decorated with harvest hangings with roofs open to the sky. Celebrating bountiful harvests, they give thanks and reflect on the 40 years the Israelites spent in the desert after the exodus from slavery in Egypt. Wands of Myrtle, willow, and palms are shaken daily in every direction to honor the earth's gifts. Families pray, dine, and sometimes sleep in the Sukkah for seven days.
As a citizen of the United States, my blessings are many. I'm not faced with hunger, war, or poverty. My family is loving, and my children and grandchildren help each other when it is necessary. Yet, I feel deeply sorrowed by those struggling in war-torn countries and those at home with unimaginable difficulties. I do what I can to ease some of their burdens, for as a child, I was taught that that is what good neighbors do. From the comments I receive, I believe that people who read my blogs have generous hearts and put themselves out as well.
I'm glad for a day to consider my blessings and am thankful for all that is good in life. Warm wishes to you and your loved ones this Thanksgiving.
What things are you grateful for. Do share your thoughts below.
References:
Wolfe, D. (2016) Think About What Family Means Around the World. HuffPost. retrieved from https://www.huffpost.com/archive/ca/entry/think-about-what-family-means-around-the-world_b_9951754
Travel Chanel website. retrieved from https://www.travelchannel.com/interests/holidays/photos/giving-thanks-around-the-world
StarTribune website. retrieved from https://www.startribune.com/how-cultures-around-the-world-show-gratitude-in-their-ceremonies-of-thanksgiving/565530632/
Mellinger, J (2020). Top 10 Ways Different Countries Give Thanks.LISTVERSE. retrieved from https://listverse.com/2020/11/20/top-10-ways-different-countries-give-thanks-2020/
I look forward to hearing about how you celebrate Thanksgiving. What in life are you most thankful for? Share on my blog site at www.eichingerfineart.com/blog. Explore my website for holiday gift ideas.
Replanting the Garden: 12” 16” framed acrylic painting / available $ 495 / free shipping in the continental U.S. Contact me at [email protected]
11/11/2023 7:13:23 PM
HOPE EXPLODING
Terror Unleashed
Last week, I attended a performance of the rock opera Hair. I was reminded of the social upheaval during the Vietnam War, but also of the hope raised by protesters of the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Women's Movement. Despite the carnage abroad, it was an era of inspiration. We sang-=Let the Sunshine In. Open up your heart, let it shine. And, we sang to Aquarius, to a time when humanity would take control of Earth as its rightful heritage--This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius with Harmony and understanding, Sympathy and trust abounding, No more falsehoods or derisions, and Golden living dreams of visions. Friends and I were horrified by the death and destruction brought about by war and thought we could create a peace-loving, compassionate generation. I'm sad that we failed.
Not only is the U.S. consistently involved in wars abroad, but its citizens have to worry about terrorists creating havoc at home. With so many people armed to the hilt, cities have become battlegrounds for militias, the drug trade, and uneducated masses believing fake news and conspiracy theories put out by politicians craving power. power. Jews, Palestinians, and the LGBTQ community live in fear as antisemitism and hatred are at all-time highs. Fanatics bully migrants seeking shelter from poverty and war and are mean to those with political, cultural, or religious positions that differ from theirs. They want freedom from government intervention as long as it is their brand of freedom and don't care it their brand of freedom impinges on their neighbors.
I blame myself and my contemporaries who protested for love and peace without finishing the job. We made strides with civil rights and women's issues, but what happened to peace? Where did we go wrong? Why doesn't peace reign triumphant? Why can't I walk city streets at night and feel safe? Why do I worry about an armed shooter attacking my grandchildren at music festivals or while in school? Why do scope scope out places to hide when attending church or synagogue? And why lock doors at night for fear of being robbed and murdered? I never had these concerns when my children were young.
What does it mean to be an American in the land of the free? President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned the nation about the military-industrial complex becoming too powerful, but we let it happen. Industries supplying ammunition and military equipment, including lobbyists like the NRA, spread fear, manipulating us for their financial gain.
The United States has been in continuous wars since the 1960s. The Veteran's Administration reports there are more than 18 million living veterans, 6 percent of the adult population. Though fewer American lives have been lost since Vietnam, the destruction and deaths on foreign soil from the wars we participate in are beyond my comprehension. Imagine the terror of hearing a stealth bomber overhead.
Wars since 1961
Bay of Pigs -1961
Vietnam War-1964-75
Laotian Civil War -1959-75
Permesta Rebellion in Indonesia -1958-61
Dominican Civil War -1965-66
Korean DMZ conflict -1966-69
Cambodian Civil War -1967-75
Multinational Intervention in Lebanon -1982-84
Grenada -1983
Bombing of Libya -1996
Tanger War in the Persian Gulf -1987-86
Invasion of Panama -1989-90
Gulf War ( Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Israel ) -1990-91
Iraqi No-Fly Enforcement Operations -1991-2003
First I.S. Intervention in Somali Civil War -1992-95
Bosnian War and Croatian War -1992-95
Intervention in Haiti -2994-1995
Kosovo War - 1998-1999
War in Afghanistan - 2001-2021
American Intervention in Yemen - 2002-present
Iraq War - 2003-2011
American intervention in the War in North-West Pakistan - 2004-2018
Second U.S. Intervention in the Somali Civil War - 2007- present
Operation Open Shield in the Indian Ocean (war on terror) - 2009 - 2016
International intervention in Libya (war on terror ) - 2011
Operation Observant Compas in Uganda - 2011 - 2017
American military intervention in Niger - 2013 - present
American -led intervention in Iraq - 2014-2021
American-led intervention in Syria - 2013 - present
Global Coalition to defeat Isis - 2014 - present
American Intervention in Libya - 2015 - 2019
Israel-Hamas War - 2023 - present
Famous war paintings
STEALTH by Peter Kalhkof BOMB by Mike Nelson Guernica by Pablo Picasso
Please share your thoughts on my blog site at www.eichingerfineart.com/blog
HOPE EXPLODING by Marilynne Eichinger is a 30” x 24” x 2” Acrylic on Canvas painting. Available for 4495. Sipped free within the continental U.S.
WILLOW - If you want to purchase a canvas print in time for the holidays from my tree collection, now it the time. Explore 30 trees for $99, includs shipping at https://www.eichingerfineart.com/collections/182747
11/4/2023 10:05:40 PM
PEACEFUL
Trees have an undergound social network that helps them survive.
Is there a loneliness epidemic?
Loneliness is trending in America, according to the U.S. Surgeon General's (Dr. Vivek H. Murthy) advisory board on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Communication. But is it true? When I examine various studies, I get mixed messages. His shows that social interactions decreased for youth between 15 to 24 over the last two decades and that half of all adults are lonely. Dr. Murthy says he didn't view loneliness as a public health concern when he took office in 2014 but became concerned when people of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds told him they felt isolated, invisible, and insignificant. Common comments heard included, "I have to shoulder all of life's burdens by myself," or "If I disappear tomorrow, no one will even notice."
What he says is concerning for a lay minister who interacts with older adults and as a grandmother of children between eight and thirty-two. Yet, among most of the people I work with, I rarely hear talk about them being lonely. The study made me wonder how many people are honest with me. Loneliness is a health risk associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death.
The elders I know who are socially active and community-involved as adults tend to stay busy until they become infirm. Since they never imagined ending up alone and isolated, they don't succumb to the mythology of old age decrepedness. Even those over 75 who have lost a spouse, friend, or relative stay active by volunteering, auditing college courses, traveling, and being engaged in an art or craft. My acquaintances tend to be educated and adequately housed, with enough money to visit distant relatives and friends.
After reviewing numerous studies, I found discrepancies that made me see the importance of not succumbing to generalizations. One size does not fit all. Older adults with a lower socioeconomic status (low education level, low income, residential dissatisfaction, living in deprived neighborhoods) are the ones most likely to be lonely. A married person with children can also be lonely. As society continues to squeeze out the middle class, more and more people are affected by the lack of funds to pursue social events.
The Committee on Aging writes that we need a movement to mend the nation's social fabric. They want everyone involved-individuals, families, schools, workplaces, health systems, technology companies, governments, faith organizations, and communities. They challenge us to destigmatize loneliness and change the nation's cultural policies.
International studies on loneliness aren't quite as bleak as ours, though they do indicate that as much as 33 percent of the world's population is lonely, with the highest rate in Brazil. The U.S. registers in the middle of the pack worldwide. Denmark, Switzerland, and Sweden show the lowest rates of loneliness in Europe.
This information goes against the notion idea that loneliness equates to isolation. Swedes, for instance, stop living with their parents at 18, much earlier than in southern Europe, where young adults remain home until they are 26. The Pew Research Center reports that a similar trend in the U.S. shows that young adults also remain living at home until they are twenty-six, unlike they did in the 1940s when they were on their own after high school.
Societies labeled as 'individualistic' report the lowest amount of loneliness due, in part, to a difference in expectations regarding social relations. For example, the culture in Sweden is to raise independent individuals. The result is that more than half of Swedish households are single-person dwellings. When young adults have difficulty adapting to a singular lifestyle where they have to manage their own finances and develop a social network, they are helped. By the time they retire, they are so used to living alone that they wouldn't have it any other way.
In 2011, the Swedish Department of Health built its first co-living apartment complex that included a social area for residents to gather. Within a decade, tens of thousands of co-living units were constructed in Stockholm, with intergenerational options available. Though co-housing units are also expanding in the U.S., they remain limited. Our culture doesn't focus on creating independent high school graduates.
Sweden also encouraged app development that helps people locate friends with similar interests. "Meetup" sites in the U.S. serve the same purpose. I found my writer's group through Meetup, and though members come from different backgrounds and experiences, after ten years of interactions, we are a caring support group
According to World Data, there is little evidence to support the notion of an epidemic of loneliness, though COVID hurt school-aged children.
The Psychology and Aging Journal reports that loneliness decreases after age 50 until about 75. Though developing ways to reduce loneliness deserves consideration, headlines about an epidemic are inaccurate when matched with historical data. Surveys worldwide don't report higher levels now than in past generations, including surveys taken in the United States.
This doesn't mean we shouldn't support those suffering from loneliness. People become isolated when they can't drive or lose their social network due to a move, age-related illnesses, or the death of close friends and relatives. It would help if our country followed Sweden's mindset by learning how to manage independence. Financial management skills and ways to develop a social network can be taught in high school.
Residing in a co-housing unit, joining a like-minded group through a social app, and volunteering are a few ways to build a community outside of work. Aging adults and those with a disability don't have to be left behind. To learn more about volunteering, visit VolunteerMatch, where you can find listings of virtual and in-person opportunities in every state.
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Art is always for sale. Peaceful is an acrylic on canvas painting/ 25.5" x 38"/ metal frame/ available for $495/ shipping included in the continental U.S. To learn more, contact me at [email protected]
I look forward to reading your comments below.
References:
U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory Report 2023. Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation. retrieved from https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf
Savage, M. (2019) Why so Many Young Swedes live alone. BBC Worklife. retrieved from htpps://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20190821-why-so-many-young-swedes-live-alone
Ortiz-Ospina, E. (2019) Are people more likely to be lonely in so-called individualistic societies? Our world Data. retrieved from https://ourworldindata.org/lonely-not-alone
Search for volunteer opportunities at Volunteer Match at
https://www.volunteermatch.org/search/virtual?gclid=Cj0KCQjwtJKqBhCaARIsAN_yS_lGJQ9f7EElM5Iz-HZszMkvvv4fF83T6T4v01HrO1Fd0aYvZfYOCi4aAvvrEALw_wcB
Zauderer, S. (2023) 49 Loneliness Statistics: How Many People are Lonely?Cross River Therapy. Retrieved from https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/loneliness-statistics#:~:text=
Frontiers in Public Health website (2022) The micro-macro interplay of economic factors in late-life loneliness: Evidence for Europe and China. retrieved from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.968411/full
