Thanksgiving in America

A little bit about Thanksgiving in America

Thanksgiving was originally founded as a religious observance among many regions and religions around the world, but in this country it naturally dates back to colonial times. On this day, near the end of harvest time, members of the community would give prayers of thanks for the blessing of the harvests received in these special Thanksgiving ceremonies.

Early traditions of Thanksgiving migrated with early settlers from Europe and merged with Native Americans celebrations. In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states in their own individual ways and it wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national ‘Thanksgiving Day’ to be held and celebrated on the final Thursday each November.

In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to break with this tradition. November had five Thursdays that year (instead of the more-common four), and he declared the fourth Thursday as Thanksgiving rather than the fifth one. His plan was to establish this holiday on the next-to-last Thursday in November from then on. However, Roosevelt's change was widely disregarded by numerous states and they continued to celebrate Thanksgiving on the traditional last Thursday of November.  Even after it was signed into federal law, in December 1941, which fixed the date of Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday of November, a few states continued to celebrate this holiday as they had been, until as late as 1956.

In the US, we are used to serving certain traditional food at Thanksgiving meals. Baked or roasted turkey is usually the main item on most Thanksgiving tables, so much so that Thanksgiving is also often called "Turkey Day"      . Long time favorites such as stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, yams, cranberry sauce, sweet corn, and various fall vegetables such as squashes, . . . and off course . . . pumpkin pie, is rarely missing from a American Thanksgiving dinner. Surprisingly enough to me, according to history, all of these foods with the possible exception of turkey were actually native to the Americas at the time and they were introduced to the settlers when they arrived. Yum . . . Yum. What a treat !  

Thanksgiving Day has become an entrenched national tradition in this country, celebrated by most. It is a time when we give thanks for everything good in our lives, when we give thanks for all of our blessings throughout the year, including the bountiful harvest that allows us to fill our tables with delicious and plentiful foods while gathered in celebration with people we cherish most in our lives. But let us also remember that it is also a time to share the bounty of our good fortune with people who are less fortunate than us and who are in need of our help. May we all find plenty to be grateful for and enjoy a day filled with blessings of peace and joy . . . great food and even greater company.  

 

 Happy Turkey Day !