Thanksgiving has
long been my favorite national holiday. I observe and appreciate
the others, but I especially like Thanksgiving for a number of
reasons. I like that there is little pressure about gifts, that it
involves food, that it is a chance for people to come together and
just be with each other, and, most importantly, that it celebrates
the idea of gratitude. Gratitude seems to have a hard time of it in
our modern world, and I am glad that there is at least one day where
that thought is pretty much universally recognized and celebrated. I
love taking time out to focus on being grateful for what I have in
my life, to slow down and take a real serious look at the people who
are important parts of my life and provide so much, and to just live
in a few moments of simple appreciation of all that surrounds me.
Sometimes I can get so caught up in the speed and complexity of life
that I can forget to take time to notice the small wonderful things
that are quiet parts of my life. And being grateful gives me
opportunities to do that.
This
year, though, I have noticed that Thanksgiving seems to be nearly
absent on the national commercial scene. We seemed to have fast
forwarded from the Halloween commercial onslaught right past
Thanksgiving and into Christmas mode. Store window decorations, TV
and media ads, newspaper ads and more have barely taken note this
year of our one day set aside for reflection and being grateful. Of
course we are a country of commerce-we are a civilization, after
all, and civilizations are about trade and cities and growth and
expansion. Getting people to buy and consume things is central to
our development-business is central to our growth. I get that, and
there is nothing wrong with that per se. But there are times when it
seems a little out of bounds and over the top. Looking at what we
do and how we do it on the commercial front is often a good
indication of where we are as a culture, and this year we are not
into being grateful. This year we seem to be hell bent and desperate
about jetting into the land of profit and super-consumption. And
when that feeling is on, there is little room for being grateful.
Ads this year talk about “winning Christmas,”“proving your
love” and even something called “Thanksgetting.” That is a far
cry from gratitude, and that bothers me.
But
just when I am getting cynical and depressed about all of that I
remember that gratitude is something that seems to be essential to
humans; something humans seem to need to do. The idea of having some
type of
“thanksgiving”
with a lower case “T” is nearly universal, whether it is
represented by something as simple as saying grace or by the more
elaborate rituals and celebrations that have existed throughout our
history and on every part of the planet. Pre-civilized people who
farmed, ancient civilizations such as the Greeks, Romans and
Chinese, and just about every religious tradition has had rituals
and days around the fall equinox where humans give thanks to beings
or gods or spirits for what they hope will be a good harvest.
Nomadic and herding cultures didn't farm, but they also needed the
regular cycle of seasons and growth to provide food for their
grazing herds. They, too, had holidays and rituals that involved
giving thanks and showing gratitude for the bounty of the earth. We
seem to need the intervention or help of mysterious sources outside
ourselves to get by, and we need to acknowledge that. We need help;
we cannot be sure of what our efforts and labors will present us
with, so nothing can or should be taken for granted. We also need
to realize that by ourselves we do not do well: humans are social
animals, and we need the mutual support and interdependence of other
humans to accomplish things. It is a good idea, most cultures think,
to thank one another for that. We simply need each other too much to
do otherwise.
So
I hope more of us can resist the”gimme” and “I want” state
of so much of our culture today and focus on gratitude. That we can
slow down, stand back and realize how much there is to be grateful
for. However and whyever it is so, a lot of our lives are way above
and beyond our own efforts. A lot happens that we really have no
role in and which mystifies us. At least one day a year we Americans
can get to be truly cognizant of that fact and share it with others.
We get the opportunity to look at our lives and where we are, and we
can express our thanks for our situation and lives just a little
more humbly. Happy Thanksgiving to you all.
Want
to loose some of those Thanksgiving added pounds? Need to dance of
that turkey and stuffing? Come on out For Blues Friday -the Friday
after Thanksgiving to this great new club on the scene for a
post-Thanksgiving party Dukes style. The club has new ownership, a
variety of draft beers on tap, room to dance, and some great food
(Try the crab cakes!) Former home of North by Northwest at the
corner of Mt. Airy and Germantown Ave, it is the place to dine and
and dance those extra pounds away. Come help welcome the Dukes to
this new venue.
No,
we are not there for New Year's this year, so we are having our own
little “Early New Year's Party.” World Cafe has a great sound
system, great seats, delicious food, plenty of space to dance, and
there will be noisemakers provided for the Early New Year's party.
Get the jump on the rest of the world; say, “Hi” to 2016 week
and a half early. Get some friends together and come party with the
Dukes.
Friday,
January 8; The Twisted Tail; 720 South 2nd
St.; Philadelphia,PA
215-558-2471;
www.thetwistedtail.com;
sets 9PM-1AM; no cover
This
is the Dukes debut gig at the Twisted Tail, one of the areas top
blues venues, and we are looking forward to playing the place. Good
food and drink, some space to dance in front of the stage, and a
good blues-loving crowd. Welcome the Dukes to the Tail and come and
enjoy the start of 2016 with the Dukes at the hotspot for blues in
Philly-The Twisted Tail.
We
have a new website!
And
we would love you to visit it, give us some feedback, and pass news
about it on to other folks. The site has videos, photos, gigs, songs
to download and more. http://www.dukesofdestiny.com/
is
the site. Check it out and let us know what you think
YouTube
We
have posted a few videos on YouTube. Please log in, view our videos,
and leave a comment or two. Tell your friends to view us and post
comments as well. Thanks:
Just
a Little Bit https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=d8iFNlDPM_c
Higher
Ground https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=baSmjnQFvXg
Got
My Mojo Working-Finale from Phoenixville Blues Festival 2015
Dukes
CD's:
Don't forget that you can get our third CD, “3”, and our most
recent CD, "Higher" at any gig, via the Dukes website, and
at these select outlets:
CD
Baby online http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/
dukesofdestiny2
KNOW
ANY PLACES THAT NEED A SHOT OF DUKES ENERGY?
