** Regardless of how our Thanksgiving tradition was formed — regardless of what is fact and what is myth — we have an incredible abundance of blessings to be thankful for. That's what the day is really about — celebrating our prosperity, our freedoms, and the many young men and women who are serving the rest of us to protect our freedoms."**
In thanks for all the service men and women who actively protect our freedoms! And in thanksgiving for all the veterans who did likewise!
May God bless you all this Thanksgiving and always!
Fellow named Lescarbo wrote a play to entertain his fellows.
That was 1599.
The following year they moved across the Bay of Fundy to what is now Nova Scotia. Eventually several of them (Protestants in fact) ended up in Jamestown ~ just in time to hold another Thanksgiving, and then in Menhoulde (Manhattan) to hold another one. One of their business partners attended the first one in Plymouth Colony.
The Spanish also claim an early Thanksgiving, but they were doing that sort of thing all the time ~ holding big feasts once a week, and really big ones on saint's days, and even bigger ones with full pit barbeque anytime they could find a big enough hole (which is why we don't count theirs, but may explain why we use turkeys instead of bulls).
Thanks for the post.
I read (here at FreeRepublic I think) that the first Thanksgiving was also due to the abandonment of the communal lifestyle. When people were given their own plot of land to farm, instead of a community plot, the yields were much larger due to a sense of ownership.
I don't have the link handy, but that would be another tidbit that was omitted.
I'll bet the colonists got just as upset over early Christmas decorations as we do.
I wonder what Sarah Hale would say if she were around to watch Southerners deep fry their turkeys in the backyard.
Sounds like my Texas Thanksgivings growing up. Yet another reason the San Jacinto monument is as tall as the Washington monument and the Texas flag is the only state flag allowed to hang as high as Old Glory.
The History Channel special the other night says the DID eat wild turkey on that first Thanksgiving.
You should read the book "1491" for insight about the Native American motives and actions before, during, and after the first Thanksgiving. That version does a pretty good job presenting all sides as having their own reasons for their actions, some of which were not so heroic. In any case, giving thanks for our bounty is a good reason for sober consideration of our blessings, no matter what the "real" history of the time might have been.
Any thoughts? Discussion?
I sit down at the table with my brother-in-law, so I don't find it too unbelievable that the Pilgrims would sit down with Indians, that they sometimes fought with.
Next you're going to tell me they didn't play football, either.