Today is time to put aside our differences

The tale of the first Thanksgiving starts with the harvest celebration of the Pilgrims and the Indians that took place in the autumn of 1623.

As the story goes, the two groups, one invaders in the other’s land, put aside their differences and broke bread together to celebrate a harvest of food coming in the midst of a tough year of survival.

The story of that first Thanksgiving, though far removed from what comprises differences and what constitutes hardship in 2017, has many of the same elements of today.

People of different backgrounds still approach each other with uncertainties.

And when the barrier of differences is crossed, people come together for a common good.

That first Thanksgiving for the Pilgrims was in celebration of a bountiful harvest coming after a devastating winter months earlier.

The Indians had helped the newcomers to their world survive and had helped teach them how to hunt and grow crops that led to their bounty. History tells us their feast lasted three days.

If there was ever a time to take to heart this story, it is this year. That first Thanksgiving story has lessons that remain in 2017.

These times are tough for many. Like the Pilgrims braving a new land and struggling with hunger and disease, many people today are faced with rising debt, loss of jobs, illness and not enough money for the food and clothing that their families need.

In our impatience for things to get better, we have become polarized and embraced old habits of mistrust and malevolence toward those different from us.

Our nation and our communities struggle with an atmosphere of divisiveness in government and among groups of people that threatens to overcome any progress we may be making as a human race.

But when disaster strikes, whether as hurricane, blizzard or terrorist attack, we manage to overcome differences and rebuild what is broken.

This year has brought storm devastation to Houston, Texas; a large part of Florida, and to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, among others. Wildfires in the West claimed hundreds of lives this year and destroyed millions of dollars in property.

The nation has witnessed horrifying acts of violence in Orlando, Las Vegas and a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, where families have been shattered by the unexplainable deaths of loved ones at the hands of deranged gunmen.

This has been a year of emotional anxiety and divisiveness along lines of race, sex and political beliefs.

The polarizing effect for many people of the election of Donald Trump as president was fresh and new a year ago; the year’s events from Charlottesville to the health care debate have widened the divisions.

Even the National Football League has become a lightning rod for differences as players take a knee rather than stand for the national anthem before games. And yet ... Even in the face of adversity and always in its aftermath, people of all races, religions and political persuasions come together and work for a common good.

At the end of the day, both sides want to put the nation first.

Not so different than the Indians and the Pilgrims.

As Thanksgiving showed their coming together, this day can be our coming together.

This can be the day we sit down to our own bounty, whether it is a meal offered at a local church or a family dinner.

As we break bread together, we give thanks for surviving what we have survived and achieving what we can achieve.

Despite our troubles, we are blessed.

Despite our differences, we are the same in our basic needs for food, shelter, companionship and purpose.

Those lessons from the first Thanksgiving are with us today.

Like our forefathers, let us celebrate the harvest and be thankful together for the bounty we share.