The American melting pot is seasoned liberally with traditions deposited one by one by the cultural crosscurrents that have shaped our social and political landscape for nearly four centuries. Many of these traditions have common themes of pride, independence, rugged individualism, and self-reliance, which we like to think of as the hallmarks of our great nation. You can see it in our parades on Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day. So it is interesting to note that the tradition of giving thanks at the end of the harvest on Thanksgiving Day, which we trace all the way back to the very first settlers in Plymouth, Mass., is about dependence, reliance on others, and blessings conferred in the midst of vulnerability.

So how do we square these conflicting views of the American character? Which are we: grateful and humble or independent and proud? Are great blessings our good fortune or our destiny? The answers to these questions can be found everywhere we look in American history, from Plymouth Rock to the war in Iraq. Our independence has been nourished and strengthened by our inter-dependence. We thrive in cooperation and stumble in isolation. Think about those other proud holidays and the men and women they honor –– the military on Memorial Day, the Founding Fathers on Independence Day, the labor movement on Labor Day. We are proud of each because they represent great challenges met and overcome by great cooperative enterprises. Benjamin Franklin said it best at the signing of the Declaration of Independence: “We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.”

Giving thanks is an expression of how much we need each other. Far from being a sign of weakness, this need is the source of our greatness. When we are hungry and are fed, we are inspired to share what we have to feed others. When we are vulnerable and are protected, we are inspired to protect others. When we are trapped and subjugated and are freed, we are inspired to free others. Gratitude is the acknowledgement of our indebtedness to others, and the payments on those debts are always made “in kind.” Over the course of centuries those payments have bought us the dual blessings of independence and strength. The moment we stop making those payments in the belief that we do not need others –– in our families, our communities, and our world –– our debt grows and our strength flags.

Let this Thanksgiving Day be a time not just to reflect on our blessings, but also to reflect on what we can do with those blessings.