the thanksgiving meal(s)

Do you have plans for Thanksgiving? I’ve heard that question at least a dozen times within the past week. For most of us, a full meal with family or close friends will be the center point of our celebration. And for many of us, what will follow is that all too familiar discomfort of having eaten too much! Did you know that the earliest Thanksgiving celebration was probably not a meal—but more likely it was numerous meals that extended over as much as six days. Can you imagine?!?

The commonly told accounts are that of a 1621 harvest feast that was shared by the English colonists, or Pilgrims of Plymouth, and the Wampanoag Indians. Their intent was to express thankfulness, gratitude, and appreciation to God, family, and friends for blessings of material possessions and relationships. It was a time to give thanks for a bountiful harvest. Interestingly enough, it was within that spirit of thankfulness that the typically unfriendly relationship between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans became one of kindness and mutual support for at least the next fifty years.

While the celebration has no doubt changed greatly from the original, the essential principles remain the same. With family, friends, (and usually food), regardless of financial ability, or social standing, we still give thanks, each in our own way, for what we know to be our own bountiful harvest.