Thanksgiving Prayer Service Reflection at Mercy Academy during an all school prayer service in the gym. This is the first "lay reflection" I ever gave. Offered on Nov 25, 2008. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/112819-thanksgiving.cfm Good morning, Mercy, and an early Happy Thanksgiving to you. I have had the great fortune over the last 7 years to celebrate Thanksgiving in many different places and in many different circumstances around the world. In fact, looking back at this period in my life, I realized that I haven’t spent a turkey day in the same place two years in a row. Some of my Thanksgivings past have been pretty glamorous, and I’ll start by sharing some of those with you: In 2001, I was on a train to the Artic Circle in Finland for a weekend of skiing, saunas, hiking in winter wonderlands, and visiting Santa Claus’ “real” home in the North Pole. That’s right, I got to meet Santa, his reindeer, the elves… the works...