Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated primarily in the United
States and Canada, with several other places around the world observing
similar celebrations. It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in
the United States and on the second Monday of October in Canada.
In the United States, the modern Thanksgiving
holiday tradition is commonly traced to a poorly documented 1621 celebration at
Plymouth in present-day Massachusetts.
The 1621 Plymouth feast and Thanksgiving was prompted by a good harvest.
Pilgrims and
Puritans who began emigrating from England in the 1620s and 1630s carried the
tradition of Days of Fasting and Days of Thanksgiving with them to New England. Several days of
Thanksgiving were held in early New England history that have been identified
as the "First Thanksgiving", including Pilgrim holidays in Plymouth in 1621 and 1623, and a Puritan
holiday in Boston in 1631.
Thanksgiving proclamations were
made mostly by church leaders in New England up until 1682, and then by both
state and church leaders until after the American
Revolution. During the revolutionary period, political influences affected the
issuance of Thanksgiving proclamations. Various proclamations were made by
royal governors, John Hancock,
General George Washington, and
the Continental Congress, each
giving thanks to God for events favorable to their causes. As President of the
United States, George Washington proclaimed the first nation-wide thanksgiving
celebration in America marking November 26, 1789, "as a day of public
thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts
the many and signal favours of Almighty God".
Thanksgiving has
its historical roots in religious traditions, but today is celebrated in a more
secular manner, typically with family.
Every year, the President of the
United States will "pardon" a turkey, which spares the bird's life
and ensures that it will spend the duration of its life roaming freely on
farmland.
Tradition
Now if you ask what is it that makes it Thanksgiving, most people will say "it's not Thanksgiving without the cranberry sauce." Here is what I looked up for traditional Thanksgiving dinner and pastimes.
Dishes
Turkey Glazed carrots
Mashed potatoes Macaroni and cheese
Gravy Jello mold with some kind of fruit in it
Cranberry
sauce Fruit salad
Stuffing Sweet potato (pie)
Butter nut
squash Pumpkin Pie
Green bean
casserole Pecan Pie
Cheesy potato
casserole Apple Pie
Rolls Apple Cider
Peas, corn Wine
Cornbread
Pastimes
American Football (Turkey Bowl)
Deer Hunting
Watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade
Splitting the Wishbone
**side fun fact about the Macy's Parade: The first American Thanksgiving Day parade was held in 1920, organized by Gimbel's Department Store in Philadelphia, not Macy's as most people believe. The NYC Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade tradition actually began in 1924, and has grown into an annual event of balloons, bands, and floats, enjoyed by more than 46 million people each year in person and on TV.**
Thanksgiving in Holland
Now while researching the small history about Thanksgiving in general, I found an interesting bit about The Netherlands; some do celebrate it!!!...Just not in the way we think...
Many of the Pilgrims who migrated to
the Plymouth
Plantation had resided in the city of Leiden from 1609-1620, many of whom had recorded their births,
marriages and deaths at the Pieterskerk. To
commemorate this, a non-denominational Thanksgiving Day service is held each
year on the morning of the American Thanksgiving Day in the Pieterskerk, a Gothic church
in Leiden, to commemorate the hospitality the Pilgrims received in Leiden on
their way to the New
World.
Now the more me and my roommate reminisced over what we were missing (starting with the apple cider) we started planning and seeing what we could make for our own little Thanksgiving here. Our dinner consisted of Turkey breasts that we marinated and fried in a pan (yeah, we don't have an oven...so it limits us), Homemade mashed potatoes and gravy, orange glazed carrots, green beans with cherry tomatoes, traditional sage and also turkey stuffing (sent from my mom in US), spinach mushroom salads, potato salad, wheat rolls, and corn. As well as some apple cider :)
Now because we are in a country that does not recognize it as a holiday; Charla, Adrian, and Arsam still had to go to work, while I also still had to go to my three hour lecture. Both before and after class I was prepping, cleaning, and cooking and it quite literally took all day up until we sat down to enjoy the meal. But well worth it, it was the largest dinner we've had here in Holland and man was it filling. While eating we also found the Turkey Bowl (Detroit Lions v. Houston Texans) online, so we tried teaching the guys American Football...very entertaining ;)
And of course now here are pics of our small Thanksgiving!
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| Prepping |
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| All four burners were on at all times... |
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| Our lovely turkey breasts marinated and about to be cooked |
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| The table, about to eat |
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| Our "tv" set up for the football game |
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| Next to no leftovers :) |
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| Now who wants to do the dishes.... |
Here are some recipes I used for the meals:
Orange Glazed Carrots
Green Beans and Cherry Tomatoes
After we were done with our dinner, and the football game was over, both me and Charla skyped our families back home who were either just eating or just finished eating...and here are photos from my family's Thanksgiving dinner up north.
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| Chef Brian cooking the duck |
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| the Turkey all cut up |
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Last, but certainly not least,
Thanksgiving is about giving thanks for the people and blessings of the past
year. From pre-meal prayers to providing holiday meals to the homeless, the
holiday is truly a celebration of praise and thanksgiving.
I am very thankful for my amazing family, as well as my great friends. Miss you all and can't wait to see most of you in 2 short months!!
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