About the Thanksgiving. I'm Polish, we don't have this holiday in our calendars. However, working with all the Americans for so many years and celebrating this day with them every year has already become a tradition. Also tonight, we're going to have our Pot-Luck dinner (turkey and mashed potatoes, for sure!) at school together. Thanksgiving to me is like a prelude to Christmas. I like it. I'm among my colleagues and students (no family around) but there's something similar to the magical atmosphere of Christmas time.
So what I'm thankful for? If I have to name the most important things, it's definitely good health and all the dear people around me. Love. Work I love. Simple things, like Italian food and Sicilian sun. I must admit, I rarely appreciate what I have. I often see the world in black colors and complain a lot about... anything. That's why I'm thankful for the Thanksgiving, a day, when we can stop and be grateful for all the blessing that life is embracing us with.
Today in the morning, when cleaning the apartment, I heard a beautiful happy-ending
story on the radio.
"Wellington - Three teenage boys have been rescued after drifting in the Pacific Ocean for 50 days in a small boat, according to news reports Thursday. The three, who disappeared from New Zealand's Pacific territory of Tokelau on October 5, were presumed to have drowned after unsuccessful searches by the New Zealand air force. A memorial service was held for them. They were rescued Wednesday by a New Zealand tuna boat, San Nikunau, which spotted them north-east of Fiji, Radio New Zealand International reported."
Can you imagine the faces of their parents when they found out their beloved sons were alive??? I'm sure they will be thankful for the miracles that sometimes happen in this crazy, hectic world...
Changing the topic, did you know that today it's Teddy Bear's Day? Do you know why the sweet bear is called Teddy? Well, the whole story you'll find on
Wikipedia, here're the most important details:
The name Teddy Bear comes from former United States President Theodore Roosevelt, whose nickname was "Teddy". The name originated from an incident on a bear-hunting trip in Mississippi in November 1902, to which Roosevelt was invited (...) (Roosevelt) refused to shoot the bear himself, deeming this unsportsmanlike (...) and it became the topic of a political cartoon by Clifford Berryman in The Washington Post on November 16, 1902.While the initial cartoon of an adult black bear lassoed by a white handler and a disgusted Roosevelt had symbolic overtones, later issues of that and other Berryman cartoons made the bear smaller and cuter.
Here's the first cartoon:
Morris Michtom then saw the drawing of Roosevelt and the bear cub and was inspired to create a new toy. He created a little stuffed bear cub and put it in his shop window with a sign that read "Teddy's bear," after sending a bear to Roosevelt and receiving permission to use his name. The toys were an immediate success and Michtom founded the Ideal Novelty and Toy Co.
A beautiful story, isn't it?
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! : )
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