holiday falling on the fourth Thursday of November. The secular holiday is celebrated annually the in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, Liberia and Norfolk Island, with the U.S. The celebration continued inconsistently every few years, becoming a regular affair in 1777 when George Washington proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving as a victory celebration honoring the defeat of the British. The original Thanksgiving feast in Plymouth, Massachusetts lasted three days and featured fish, wild fowl, venison, pumpkin, harvest grains and the Three Sisters: beans, dried maize (corn) and squash, among other seasonal items. Our tradition of giving thanks and feasting stems from a gathering of Pilgrims and Native Americans in autumn 1621-the Pilgrims thanking God for a safe journey to the New World and both groups celebrating the colony's first successful harvest. It's been our tradition for so long, sometimes it's hard to remember where that tradition all started. And, more obviously, gobbling up autumn goodies like turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce, watching football and scouring retail ads for Black Friday holiday deals.
Every year we gather in the kitchen or around the dining room table with family and friends, celebrating all that we're thankful for.
