If you think that Thanksgiving is all about the food, you are sadly mistaken. Although, the food is definitely amazing! Thanksgiving is about much more than food. It's a time for reflection and thankfulness for what you have. It's a time to share with family and friends. Not only is Thanksgiving one of my favorite holidays, but it has a history that is worth sharing and will help you appreciate this holiday more this year.
I was taught in elementary school that Thanksgiving is when the Pilgrims enjoyed a wonderful meal with the Indians. That's about as much as I remember and probably as much as many people remember from the story. The Pilgrims were Plymouth colonists, and the Indians were the Wamponoag Indians. This, I wasn't taught.
In September of 1620, the Mayflower left Plymouth, England in hopes of reaching the New World. The Mayflower is not one of Christopher Columbus's ships, though, which my elementary self would confuse rather often. Christopher Columbus sailed with the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria about 200 years earlier.
When the ship sailed into the New World after 66 days at sea, they were farther North than their intended destination. They hit land in Cap Cod, Massachusetts instead of the Hudson River. A month later crossed the Massachusetts Bay and founded a village that they named Plymouth, which later became part of what is known as New England.
Winter was quickly approaching after their establishing Plymouth. During that very first winter in the New World, most people remained on the ship. Half of the Mayflower's original passengers saw spring while the other half passed away during the winter from diseases.
During the spring, the colonists moved to shore and received a visit from a Native American who spoke English. Later, he returned with another Native American. One who everyone learned about, Squanto.
I learned in school that Squanto was very friendly and helped the colonists, which is true. Although his background was something that I was never taught.
Squanto was a member of the Patuxet tribe. He had been kidnapped by an English sea captain and sold into slavery in England. He escaped to London and found his way home on an exploratory expedition. After he came home, he was again abducted and taken to Spain where he was to be sold into slavery once more. He was saved and returned to his homeland 2 years later.
When Squanto met the colonists, they were malnourished and barely surviving. He taught them to hunt, fish, and harvest. He was their guide and translator.
After their first successful harvest, the governor of their colony decided that a feast was necessary. The governor invited their Native American allies and they all shared a three day festival. There was no turkey, as is customary today, but instead, deer was on the menu. There was no pumpkin pie or wonderful desserts that we share with our families on this day. This day was to give thanks to God for everything that they had. Although they didn't have much, they were thankful about their survival and the help of Squanto. This was what came to be known as the "first Thanksgiving".
I share this history knowing that there is so much more to the history of Thanksgiving in America. There is clear evidence of several different cultural traditions that were all brought to this country by the early emigrating people. But this is as close as I could get to the version that I was taught in elementary school and have found many of my peers to have learned as well. This is a clarification of the single story that we were taught.
Revisiting this history has taught me that Thanksgiving isn't about the banquet of food laid out in front of me. Nor is it about a single story. It's about reflection and gratitude. It's about being with family and friends and enjoying a meal together as we honor the many blessings we have in our lives. It's about universally celebrating our Thanksgiving as Americans, as our forefathers so hoped we would be declaring it a National Holiday.
