Jocelyn Gracza
I spoke with my mother last night on the phone. The turkey was cooking, the potatoes were peeled, the sweet potato casserole had the marshmallows on it, the green bean casserole was chilling in the garage, the cranberry relish was being ground and the pumpkin pies were cooling. All that remained was for the family to arrive from the far flung places we all live. My brother and his family from North Carolina, my younger brother from Alabama, my brother-in-law and niece from Georgia and my sister from Missouri. This holiday is about family and friends. As we sit down around the well laden table, my father always asks each one of us to say what we are thankful for this year. There will be sadness in hearts this year, as one place at the table will be empty, my younger sister Nancy went to be with the Lord in the Spring.
It is truly amazing that in this day and time, we still have a whole day that is given over to the single task of giving thanks to the Lord. Symbolically, the President of the United States pardons one turkey every year. It goes to Disneyland where it lives out its life in peace. We eat all the rest!! This pardon is to remember the first European settlers who traveled to America hundreds of years ago. They were fleeing the religious persecution at home, looking for a new world where they could worship the Lord in freedom. These Pilgrims arrived at the start of winter, too late in the season to grow crops and prepare for the bitter, cold months ahead. Many died from sicknesses and starvation. Those who were saved, by the kind help of the native Indians, gave thanks for surviving such a cruel winter. In the Spring, again with the help of their Indian neighbors, the Pilgrims learned to plant crops, build better shelters, fish in the rivers and hunt in the woods. When the next winter’s snows began to fall, they were much better situated than the prior year. In celebration and thanksgiving, they invited the Indians to a feast to show their appreciation. They celebrated with the fruits of their harvest; pumpkins, green beans, cranberries, potatoes, corn, venison, fish and turkey. We still eat these foods on Thanksgiving Day to remember that first Thanksgiving Day so long ago. And we give thanks
