Happy Thanksgiving. Here’s to a season of gratitude.

Good morning, and Happy Thanksgiving. 

While it wasn’t until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national holiday for Thanksgiving, people throughout the world have long celebrated the autumn harvest—an important moment of the year to take stock. For those who live in harsher climates, for example, a bountiful end of the season meant the community could (hopefully) sustain itself through brutal winter days ahead. 

By this time of year, my grandparents had their pantries loaded with canned tomatoes, peaches, pickles, onions and potatoes—they were prepared. For me, Bradley Zeve, the tomatoes are canned, walnuts dried and stored, persimmons mostly harvested, a little early this year. I, too, am ready for winter.

Living on the Central Coast it can be easy to forget how difficult it is for so many people to enjoy fresh produce, not to mention locally caught fish, throughout the year. We live in a bountiful agricultural community. Many people in our community work hard year round tilling the soil, planting seeds, setting up and operating irrigation systems, battling gophers and other pests, and ultimately harvesting, packing and shipping produce, for us, for the nation and for the world. That alone is worthy of a fall celebration. It’s also worth our gratitude to those who work hard, including on holidays, to keep people fed. 

I am writing today wishing you and your loved ones a Happy Thanksgiving. To those of you who are working today, perhaps feeding people who are celebrating with a feast, I offer an extra big thank you for all that you do.

Today and tomorrow the staff of the Weekly and Monterey County Now are off. But just like every Thursday, a new issue of the Weekly is out today; you can pick it up on newsstands throughout Monterey County, or view it digitally by clicking here. 

I’m grateful that you, our readers, appreciate local and independent journalism. Thank you for reading, sending us your letters, providing news tips and feedback, supporting our advertisers and overall, for sustaining us. 

P.S. During this season of gratitude, I encourage you to consider donating to support Monterey County Gives! Join our collective effort to support 206 local nonprofits uplifting our community. You can read about their work and make a donation online at montereycountygives.com.