Our view: This year, we’re thankful for progress

Somewhere over the course of this week, most Tri-parish residents will plop their feet up, sit back and relax.

Most laborers in the area will have a couple of days off thanks to the holiday and practically everyone’s bellies will be completely overwhelmed by pounds of turkey, rice dressing and yams. If one is lucky, there may even be a little bit of sweet potato pie in order.

Thanksgiving is here – one of the biggest holidays in the American calendar year. But in recent years, one may suggest that the fourth Thursday in November has become a bit of an overlooked holiday – a day that we almost take for granted, compared to years past.

It’s a day that we all know as a holiday, but few still seem to understand the meaning for its existence.

When speaking with an 8-year-old child this week, the youngster said that the holiday was created because, “stores wanted to make sure that people had a nice meal before Black Friday shopping.”

The young man’s comments are obviously of innocence. But he was also quickly told that this day is one of much greater significance.

Thanksgiving is a day where moms, dads, sons, daughters, friends, neighbors, aunts, uncles and grandparents may all spend time in unison.

It’s a day where our modern fast-paced world slows down a bit and people actually speak for one another via spoken word and not text message chatter. It’s a time where people physically sit down and eat at a kitchen table, rather than running around the house with a foam plate in hand.

It’s also a time where stories are told, football is played and memories are made – it’s practically the first day in a series of festive weeks that lead into the Christmas season and also the joys of a new year.

At the Tri-Parish Times, we are thankful this year for progress within our community. In Lafourche, Terrebonne and St. Mary parishes, the economies are booming and workers are steadily being employed.

A lot of those success stories are detailed within our pages this week throughout our progress edition.

Our industries are growing, people are making more money and conditions are improving all-around.

Things like economic development are fluid – these things change from year-to-year. But while it lasts, mark us down as a locally owned business that is very thankful to see how steadily everyone else has grown.