Article by Shirley M. Porterfield
Thanksgiving as we all know is a National Holiday that we celebrate on the fourth Thursday in the month of November every year. Thanksgiving originally started among the Pilgrims, who had arrived in America from England in 1620 seeking Religious Freedom. Upon arrival in America, they were met with many challenges. Among these challenges were learning how to farm the land and getting through the harsh Winter.
The Pilgrims learned how to adjust to the harsh winters by wearing warmer clothes. With the help of the Wampanoag Native Americans (Reference -2), they were able to plant and harvest crops which wasn’t an easy task to do. Because the land was harsh and the terrain was rough, you needed the skills on how to manage and cultivate the crops. Those skills were shown to the Pilgrims by the Wampanoag Native Americans. When the time came for gathering and harvesting the crops, the Pilgrims were amazed how their harvest had become so plentiful. The Pilgrims used the First Thanksgiving to give thanks and blessings to God for their bountiful Harvest of crops and their arrival safely in a new land. Along with their family and their new friends, the Wampanoag Native Americans who also had made many sacrifices during the year. The Pilgrims had to endure many dangerous encounter while sailing across the ocean. So the Pilgrims and the Native Americans decided to cook and prepare a meal to honor their friends and family on the fourth Thursday in November. This day was known as the First Thanksgiving.
This day still remain as a day of reflection by many people as a time to give thanks to God Almighty for blessings and keeping them though many trials and tribulations. Today we can look back and say that God has blessed us during this year of the pandemic with all its known and unknown circumstances. We can give God the glory for Another’s Day’s Journey and know that God is an Awesome God that is constantly blessing and showering us with his grace and mercy. We should also give thanks to God for making sure that our family is well and helping us to put food on our tables.
So we can conclude that Thanksgiving remains today as it did during the early days of our Republic – steadfast with its roots in Religious and Cultural Traditions. We wish you a Bless Thanksgiving from our house to yours. “Happy Thanksgiving”.
References
2. name of indians at the first thanksgiving - Bing ( for Wampanoag Native Americans Reference)
3. GIFs from Wix.com
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