Hanukkah is a time when, as Jews, we give thanks that we were able to avoid annihilation and/or assimilation by the Syrians in 150 B.C.E. Besides the fact that every almost every Jewish holiday (besides fast days) suggests that we should stuff our faces with a delicious repast, Hanukah (like most Jewish holidays) is a time to be thankful that we as a people survived to have such superlative lives