Friends Giving
Why the best holiday is the one we made up ourselves
Look, it’s the start of the festive season and I’m about to get a little cliché on you. Maybe more than a little. This time of year just does that to me. It encourages you to smile a bit wider, hug a bit tighter, and act like you genuinely enjoy the strange casserole your aunt brings every single year, even though everyone knows that no one actually does.
But here’s what I believe: in tandem with Thanksgiving is a sub-holiday that’s actually the original holiday in disguise.
Friends Giving.
Whether or not we like to admit it, we’re always excited to know of or be invited to one. Or many. And if possible, make multiple stops stuffing our faces with more of everything.
Because that’s what this is really about. Not the history we were taught. Not the romanticized story of pilgrims and Indigenous Americans sharing a perfect dinner (we all know that table got flipped). But the idea underneath it all:
Friends. Sharing our experiences, food, stories, and time.
The way I was taught Thanksgiving as a kid? Definitely not accurate historically. For obvious reasons. That first dinner between immigrants and strangers was way more complicated than construction paper turkeys let on.
But the theme? The thing buried under all the mythology? That part’s worth keeping.
When the Pilgrims landed and met the people here, they ate together. That’s the story we tell. And here’s what that story is actually about:
When people get off boats, planes, cars, to anywhere... bro, it’s just land. And nobody really owns it because one day at some point we’re all not gonna be here anymore. We’re meant to share this experience.
And that’s Thanksgiving, man. That’s it.
Making sure others feel less alone out there. Whether it be on new land, in a new job, in life.
As we welcome in this season tomorrow, I want you to acknowledge something you’re going to do anyway: you’re going to contact the people you’re not with and let them know you’re thankful for them. That you’re grateful you met them.
But here’s the move: if you know someone that needs an invite somewhere? Don’t hesitate.
That’s how we build our brand as humans back up. We welcome new people who would love to share their story with you into your story.
This is what we’re all about here at Gents Journey: sharing this journey together.
Tomorrow we go home. To the places, the hearts, the people that make us feel less alone.
Enjoy this weekend, my friends. I love that this community and our company can really shine a light on what’s going on and how we can collaborate while we’re here to evolve and elevate.
Happy Turkey Day!
Best,
Matt McManus // Co-Founder, Gents Journey
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