The Thanksgiving newspaper made a huge thud as it hit the front porch early Thursday morning. The moment I took it out of the plastic bag, Black Friday sales circulars spilled onto the floor.

When I was a child, my brother, sister and I fought over all of those advertisements to catch a glimpse of all the stuff stores were selling for Christmas. Instead of watching the annual Macy’s parade on television, I spent most of my childhood Thanksgiving mornings poring over the Sears Wish Book. I made detailed lists of the various video games and action figures I wanted for Christmas. I practically salivated as I flipped through the pages.

Those Thanksgiving morning wish book sessions became a tradition in the Hillyer house.

Of course, the Sears Wish Book is long gone and all we are left with are the annual Black Friday sales circulars.

This Thanksgiving morning as my wife and I read the news, our 1-year-old was busy making a mess of the advertisements at my feet.

Too young to know anything about Santa Claus or conspicuous consumption, Gibson delighted in looking at the pictures, even if he turned a few upside-down.

Flipping through some of the advertisements with Gibson, I remarked about how little we needed the things advertised as essential and desirable. With a new child and an ever-shrinking house, our lives are filled up with enough stuff as it is.

In fact, many of the things that my family has acquired over the past 10 years are now parceled into several storage locations across Adams County in hopes that one day we will be able to live in a place that can hold it all.

Interestingly, I have heard the same lament from many people across the Miss-Lou, who say they are focusing less on stuff and paying attention to family.

During the economic boon times, when people shopped and dropped and spent with no restraint, a friend of mine said that we were living in a “culture of scarcity.” People, he said, were focused on everything they didn’t have, whether it was time, money or stuff and spent like never before to fill this bottomless pit of want, even if it meant raising the country’s consumer debt to record levels.

However, all of that spending never quenched their need to have more and their belief that they didn‘t have enough to share.

Maybe the change in focus this holiday for many families is one from conspicuous consumption to a spending pattern more focused on abundance than scarcity.

Paradoxically, in a time that most people likely have less — having lost jobs or savings — we are recognizing the intangibles we do have.

Last week, I happened to be in the Natchez Stewpot when a lady walked in the door pleading not for food or money. No, this lady who now lives on the streets was looking for something even more basic. All she wanted was a blanket to shield herself from the impending cold.

Who among us does not have a blanket we could give this woman? Likely most of us — and recognizing that we are part of the solution will go a long way toward feeding the hungry and clothing the poor.

By recognizing our responsibility and our abundance, we realize that we are rich — every one of us in some way.

Ben Hillyer is the web editor of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3540 or ben.hillyer@natchezdemocrat.com.