Thanksgiving Day, what is it all about then?

I’ve always known that America celebrates Thanksgiving, and it’s a big national holiday, but I’ve never taken the time to see what it is about.  So, I’ve been reading all about it, and as I do, I wish that I could experience a true American Thanksgiving for myself, as it sounds so welcoming.

The essence of Thanksgiving is one of sharing, community, gratitude and compassion for others, which is a really important message; I find it refreshing to think that families come together to celebrate this reason.

The tradition of Thanksgiving goes back to 1620 where the Pilgrims left Plymouth, England in search civil and religious liberty in the New World.  They journeyed by sea until they saw land, which saw them arriving in Massachusetts, they searched for a suitable landing place and before they left the ship they signed the Mayflower Compact, which was America’s document of civil government.

The Pilgrims built shelter, but the harsh winter, illness and starvation took the lives of around half of their number before Spring.  With the help of neighbouring Native Americans, they enjoyed a plentiful harvest the following summer

On 13^th December the Pilgrims then declared a three day feast to give thanks to God and to celebrate with their Native American friend.  There were so many people celebrating that the Pilgrims didn’t have enough food for everyone, so the Native Americans brought some of their own food to the feast including turkey, duck, deer, berries, squash and cornbread.  This feast would see America’s first Thanksgiving Festival.

These days it would seem that Thanksgiving is about families coming together to share a Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, mash potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, seasonal vegetables and gravy, and commonly pumpkin pie is shared. 

Being thankful is such an important thing, which can be easily forgotten so I think it is a brilliant idea to set aside some time to be thankful.  I read a quote recently that, in my opinion summed up Thanksgiving and it was by W. Clement Stone, it is:

“If you are really thankful, what do you do?  You share”

Beautiful!