Mouths begin to salivate in anticipation as the meal nears its completion. Grandma has just finished her traditional candied yams, also known as sweet potatoes, and the smell of Mom’s homemade apple pie wafts throughout the house causing stomachs to rumble. However, the real star of the show is the turkey. It can be served baked, roasted, deep-fried and a variety of other ways.
As the meal is fully prepared, the family now sits around the table and family members tell one thing that they are thankful for. Then as people have eaten more than their fair share of food, they lay on their backs sprawled on the couch in front of the television out of pure exhaustion. Their bodies simply cannot handle any more food, so they shut down one by one in the hopes of curtailing eating. This is the holiday known as Thanksgiving.
I really do
not have a clue
how to explain
this holiday
to any of my
international friends. There are
many holidays we as Americans
celebrate that some people might
have difficulty understanding.
Thanksgiving is no exception.
The holiday originated in
1621 when the Plymouth settlers
and the Wampanoag Indians
shared an autumn harvest feast
together, and it later became
known as the first Thanksgiving.
These autumn feasts were not
uncommon, as they were celebrated
among many American
Indian groups. These feasts were
originally held for commemorating
the harvest and the surplus
of crops, according to history.com.
The holiday now can be
roughly summated to the three
Fs – family, food and football,
but not in that precise order.
One could argue the holiday
has only become a day when we
as Americans celebrate our own
gluttony with seemingly justified
reasoning. Let’s be honest with
ourselves – a holiday celebrated
in this way fits in perfectly
with our American philosophy:
Eat like there is no tomorrow.
This ideology can also possibly
explain our abundance of health
problems, but that is another
story. I am largely in favor of the
three Fs, but I do believe they
should be used in moderation,
especially as it relates to food.
Really, what is the difference
between this holiday and any
other day of the week or any
day of the year?
Who are we
giving thanks
to, and why
are we giving
thanks?
If we are giving
thanks
to the Judeo-
Christian God,
then should
not he be worthy
enough to receive our thanks
every day of the week and not
just one day out of the entire
year?
Year by year, this holiday continues to lose any importance
that it once had as advertisers
bombard us with the Christmas
holiday. Advertisements of Santa
Claus, Christmas trees and all of
their accessories are prominently
displayed in stores and shopping
malls of every kind. For advertisers,
the Christmas holiday could
not come any sooner. Advertisers
rely so heavily on the Christmas
season in the hopes of making
large profits that I imagine some
normally begin their marketing
campaigns as soon as Halloween
ends. It’s almost as if the only
purpose Thanksgiving serves is
to market Christmas.
In light of all that I have said, I
am in favor of the Thanksgiving
holiday. I will thoroughly enjoy
spending time with family and
friends I have not seen since Fall
Break, eating good food and
watching a terrible football game
with the winless Detroit Lions.
Lawrence Simmons is a senior majoring in communication. He can be contacted at [email protected].