Its Thanksgiving week! A time when families travel to and fro to go over the river and through the woods to Grandma’s house, you know.
Far be it from Agent Straight-Talk to stand in the way of family gatherings, turkey and Black Friday shopping strategy, so this week we’re rewinding a few of our most popular posts the past few months. As always, the goal is to share a little oral health knowledge in an interesting way. If by chance we inform you of something new, make you smile, or even squirt milk out of your nose while reading, good for us!
But first, a brief word on the historic holiday many of us will observe Thursday.
No American holiday better symbolizes America’s character than Thanksgiving. The Fourth of July celebrates American independence, democracy and patriotism, but Thanksgiving is different.
Thanksgiving is a spiritual holiday commemorating America’s gratefulness for our nation’s prosperity, freedom and blessings. At Thanksgiving we gather to give thanks for a country blessed with a bounty of natural resources, fertile farmland and the freedom, as a people, to ply our individual talents and skills with a cornucopia of enterprises.
Years ago I reviewed a book entitled, “A Great and Godly Adventure - The Pilgrims and the Myth of the First Thanksgiving” by Godfrey Hodgson.
In the book Hodgson pointed out some interesting facts. For example, he wrote that it was unlikely that turkey was the main entrée at the first Thanksgiving because turkeys weren't that plentiful in eastern Massachusetts. In other words, pilgrims were about as likely to bag a wild turkey with a matchlock musket as little Ralphie was with his Red Ryder BB gun.
He also pointed out that the pilgrims never called themselves “pilgrims” or “puritans,” but rather Englishmen, and that they had no grand strategy of founding a country, a county, or a co-op. Their main concern was building a village and a church free from persecution by the Church of England.
His book concluded with these two points: while Thanksgiving is drastically different than when George Washington and Abraham Lincoln called for it as an annual observance, it remains to this day a breathtaking and important story.
"One can deconstruct the idea of Thanksgiving as much as one likes," Hodgson wrote. "It remains as a domestic celebration of gratitude, humility, and inclusiveness. These are not qualities for which anyone need apologize."
Okay, now that you’ve had your entrée, here is today’s main course. Unlike Thanksgiving dinner, I sincerely hope the blog rewinds below are free of any turkeys.
In 1991’s City Slickers, Jack Palance told Billy Crystal there was just one thing that was the secret to life and it was up to Crystal’s character Mitch Robbins to figure that out. In June we wrote there are two important considerations when choosing a dental plan; wish we could make it simpler, but real life and insurance is a little more complicated than the movies.
2 Considerations When Buying a Dental Plan
Every presidential administration has its secrets, but President Grover Cleveland’s administration managed to keep his serious dental surgery secret for nearly a quarter of a century. In July we wrote about Cleveland’s highly classified dental procedure and why he insisted it be kept secret.
The Best Kept Dental Surgery Secret Ever
In one of our back to school posts in August, Agent Straight-Talk shared the importance of parents instilling good oral hygiene habits in school age children when they are young. In the post we listed four ideas on how to make brushing twice a day more fun for kids. Consider it our contribution to ensuring that No Child is Left Behind when it comes to taking care of their teeth.
4 Ways to Get Kids to Brush
Thanks for reading Agent Straight-Talk, and if you want to take a few minutes break this weekend to see about dental plans in your area – between servings of pumpkin pie and another round of turkey – click here. If you’re really feeling lethargic after all the good food this weekend, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and LinkedIn for a regular eye-opener.
Dental Insurance Store wishes all our readers safe travels and a healthy and enjoyable Thanksgiving!
Photo source: snowvillageinn.com
Copyright 2014, Bloom Insurance Agency, LLC