Thanksgiving — like the universe — is expanding.
Traditionally a time for Americans to pause and give thanks to a Supreme Being — for health or harvest or happenstance, Thanksgiving is evolving before our very eyes into a holiday where we give thanks to each other as well.
Just this week we received Thanksgiving-themed thank-you notes from a doctor's office, a lawyers' association, a New Jersey congressman and others. Can Thanksgiving-themed gift cards be far behind?
It's not a bad idea. Saying thank you to more people.
So, in the widening spirit of the season: Thank you everyone for sending us reports of Thanksgiving 2013 celebrations in other countries. Thank you for sharing your photos and stories with us. Thank you for helping us get glimpses into what it's like to be an American where you are. Thank you for showing us your food. And your families. And your friends. And your surroundings.
Thank you to colleague, Melody Kramer, for juggling the social media aspects of the Xpat Project, which is scheduled to continue until Christmas.
Thank you to all other NPR colleagues, especially those working the long holiday weekend to continue to give the LURVers — Listeners, Users, Readers and Viewers — of NPR meaningful stories.
Thank you to our NPR bosses for letting us experiment with this idea — not knowing whether it would be a triumph or, well, a turkey.
And, year-round, thank you to you.
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As part of The Xpat Project, NPR asked American expatriates to send stories and photos of their 2013 Thanksgiving observances in other countries. Now follows an edited sampling — updated now and then over the next few days:
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