Today, millions of Americans will be sitting down to a Thanksgiving meal with families or friends. All of us have much to be thankful and grateful for, I know 
I do. As I do march to the tune of a different drummer, I began to do some research into the word grateful for another post I was writing. The words grateful and gratitude have been traced to an archaic adjective "grate" meaning thankful, which was derived from the Latin "gratus”; pleasing, loving, agreeable, thankful… As in many of the “old, simplistic languages” the meaning of the word was defined by the custom, context and culture.
Today, as defined by our culture and customs, most will be “gratus” for the many blessings that we have received. Many of us, will be sitting down for a feast fit for a king and his host of friends and family. Some will give grace to God and the Creator in some form or fashion. Some pre-meal blessings will go on adnausium. They will work the room as the food gets cold and starts developing salmonella while others whose gastric juices are getting the better of them, will keep it simplistic; “Good food, good meat. It’s getting cold, let’s eat!” However, nothing is more simplistic and shows “gratus” than the line that Catholics use in their blessing; ” Bless us O Lord and these Thy gifts for which we are about to receive…” The first time I heard these words, it was a beautiful, lovely and graceful way to give God the “gratus” He deserves for the meal we are about to share with our loved ones on this special day.
We as a Nation have been richly blessed. We gave been given much and much we often take for granted. Today, I wish one and all, Beatus Gratus…
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