50+ Lifestyles

Just Saying…

By Q.C. Jones

Let’s Rewrite Thanksgiving…

The scene: Pilgrims dressed in their traditional black and white garb contrasting against friendly Native Americans attired in colorful feathers, beads and sporting pre-modern avant-garde hairstyles sitting around massive picnic tables in a serene forest setting. I can close my eyes and envision a thousand pictures of the scene. Reinforced by greeting cards, TV portrayals and schoolhouse bulletin boards this is my vision of Thanksgiving. Some would say this is part of our American Culture. Being a solid American, I would agree.

Recently this picture of the American past has come under attack. Further, in a deep conversation with a young friend, I was informed of two things. First, this was not the true story. Perhaps, more shocking, I was flat-out told that “my” generation had been out-and-out brain washed. My young correspondent went on to say, “You guys grew up in the great Red-Scare Era of atomic threat and were subjected to propaganda designed to build patriotic robots.”

Somehow I find it hard to believe that my grade-school teachers would take time from reading, writing and arithmetic to be part of an evil plot to brainwash the youth of America. But, as we round the corner into November and the Thanksgiving Season, the conversation has continued to weigh heavy on my mind.

So with this on my mind, I decided to do a little research and serve up the hot piping results like a jumbo slice of grandma’s pumpkin pie.

The Thanksgiving Story Brain Washing, Yea or Nay?

Thanksgiving has been around for a very long time. It was first celebrated nationally in 1789, after a proclamation by George Washington. Looking over the great volumes of history surrounding Washington, I came up with the following descriptors: courageous soldier, hardworking surveyor, successful land speculator, strong leader, devoted husband, gracious host and President. Using Google, which is the ultimate authority in finding obscure facts, I did find one article titled “Independence by Propaganda” which outlined why the American Colonies had no right “inalienable or otherwise” to divorce themselves from King George. In spite of a solid hour of research I could find nothing stating that Washington was a fabulous generator of propaganda.
Now let’s move forward 70 some years to Abraham Lincoln. In 1863, “Honest Abe” laid the foundation for our modern Thanksgiving by establishing the last Thursday of November as a day of “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens…” While I might have selected a word a little snappier than “dwelleth,” Abe was fond of fancy speech and the message was clear. Again, no hints of mind-bending, brain washing or impacting the youth of America.

From my point of view there appears to be no serious mind melting, yet.

Now for the First Thanksgiving, score one for the New England Patriots.

I know it sounds a little bit like the latest National Football League score, but maybe there is some chicanery here. One could argue for and against Thanksgiving originating someplace besides those Pilgrim picnic tables previously mentioned. Back when life was tenuous and Americans were living in unheated shacks made of logs, mud and sticks, people demonstrated their thanks for just being alive. For instance, the first settlers at Jamestown recorded Thanksgiving celebrations in 1607 and 1610. A few more celebrated what is called the first Thanksgiving at Burkeley Hundred, Virginia in 1619. Unfortunately both of these settlements all but died out. Jamestown slowly disappeared by the mid-1800s and Burkeley Hundred was abandoned after an Indian Massacre in 1622.

The Pilgrim Thanksgiving lays claim to the First Thanksgiving based on a Celebration held in 1621 when the group held a three-day celebration most likely during September. What is recorded is this: Fifty of the 100 folks who originally landed (think death, disease and hardship) were joined by some 90 Native Americans for a major feast.

This definitely sounds like a big-time get together. It is well documented in journals and publications springing up as early as the mid-1700s. Nod along if you fail to see propaganda in this story.

Thanksgiving has always put a burden on the ladies…

Drilling into the aged manuscripts we discover that just like today, the ladies got stuck with the heavy lifting. The documentation states that four Pilgrim women handled the cooking arrangements. Eleanor Billington, Elizabeth Hopkins, Mary Brewster and Susanna White did all the cooking for the group of 140 folks. Turkey was definitely on the menu.

Here is a quote from Mayflower traveler Edward Windslow: “Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruits of our labor. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week.” The fowling referred to was wild turkey. And the “served the company for almost a week” part indicates left-over turkey was a problem back then as well.

Fact, fiction or the real deal?

One might say the Virginians lost their claim on the first Thanksgiving by default. The Pilgrims win the right to claim the story. Turkey holds the lead on the menu. While I can’t say on the brain-washing thing, I can say this, my teachers had a hard enough time getting us to wash our hands without spending time on the brains… Just saying. Happy Turkey Day.