Today, America pauses to give thanks for our bounty and for our many blessings.

These days, it can be difficult to find much to be thankful for, as our nation grapples with a major financial crisis, wars on two fronts and a deep concern for our collective future. There is much to weigh us down.

But as we gather today with family and friends to share Thanksgiving, we should take stock of that which is good in our lives.

Throughout much of our history, Thanksgiving was celebrated sporadically, often following times of crisis or calamity. Only in the 20th century was it officially established for the fourth Thursday of November. Thanksgiving began in austerity, a celebration by Pilgrims grateful for their survival in a harsh new land. In the grimmest days of the Civil War, President Lincoln declared a day of thanksgiving, reminding his fellow Americans that even in times of severity, they could stop to give thanks for what they did have and to pray the country would be restored to "peace, harmony, tranquillity and union."

As our nation is sorely tested today, this holiday gives us a respite, a day to acknowledge the good in our lives, the generosity of many among us and that we still have the power to face our challenges and restore prosperity and peace.

As the Thanksgiving letters on the opposite page and online at honoluluadvertiser.com /opinion illustrate, we still have much to be thankful for today — for those who bring love and joy into our lives; for good health; for those among us who share their good fortune with others; for those who have touched our hearts in countless ways; for living in one of the most beautiful places on Earth; for our opportunities big and small; and for the resilience of the American spirit.

It's that resilience, and our capacity to give that will make a difference in the holiday months ahead.

As we begin the holiday season, many Americans, despite their own personal circumstances, will also step forward to help those among us who are less fortunate.

Today, as it has for the past 80 years, The Honolulu Advertiser begins its annual holiday appeal for those in our community who need our help.

Throughout those 80 years, whether times were good or bad, the people of Hawai'i have responded generously.

All of us have been hurt in this economic crisis. For many, however, this financial crisis is not just a matter of tightening their belts. Helping Hands, our partner agency in the Honolulu Advertiser Christmas Fund, notes it now is seeing many working families who simply cannot make ends meet asking for help this year.

Just as early Americans at that first Thanksgiving knew they needed one another to survive, as a community we must now more than ever rely on one another. It is in crisis that we are most closely brought together and we are confident the people of Hawai'i will open their hearts to those among us who need a hand.

On this Thanksgiving, The Advertiser 'ohana wishes you and yours a happy Thanksgiving. We give thanks for being a part of Hawai'i's history for 152 years, for our Island community and for our generous readers, who time and again have defined the spirit of aloha.