Thanksgiving Giblets

In 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue with three ships, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria. During this voyage he discovered the New World. Adrianus Valerius wrote the Dutch hymn, We Gather Together in 1597 to celebrate the Dutch victory over the Spanish in the Battle of Turnhout. The Mayflower left England on September 6, 1620 and 66 days later dropped anchor in the tip of Cape Cod (Provincetown Harbor). In March of 1621, all surviving  passengers moved ashore at Plymouth. Later in 1621, the Pilgrims and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is recognized today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. Some sort of crustless pumpkin pie with honey,stewed pumpkins,milk and spices may have been baked in the ashes in the Plimouth Settlement but sadly no ovens were available. Several variations preceding current recipes appear prior to the 1796 familiar sounding version including milk,pumpkins,eggs,molasses,allspice and ginger or sugar,mace and nutmeg.

Somewhere between the 1820's and 1830's, the American folk song Turkey In The Straw was published. Then in 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November. In November of 1924 , a small group of Macy's employees, floats and animals from the Central Park Zoo presented the first Macys Parade. Giant helium ballons were added in 1927. Ocean Spray was formed in 1930 by three cranberry growers whose first product was a jellied cranberry sauce. Today the company has over 600 grower families. The inaugural NFL Thanksgiving football game was played in 1934 between the Detroit Lions and the Chicago Bears. The Bears beat the Lions 19-16 in that first holiday game.

Gary Cooper starred as a pacifist turned war hero in Sergeant York, released in 1941 . The film featured Cooper's character as a country boy sharpshooter who utilized his turkey calls to lure birds and enemies to reveal themselves. In November of 1973, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving was released and the heartfelt prayer from Linus became history. Lucy's humiliation of Charlie Brown with the moving football became infamous. Snoopy's loving preparation of the popcorn and toast feast became instant holiday entertainment. In approximately 1981, the Butterball Hotline was created.  November 25,1987 was the release date for Planes, Trains and Automobiles. This film told the hilarious and sometimes poignant story of Steve Martin and John Candy's efforts to get home for Thanksgiving.

There is your Thanksgiving timeline. We all share those dates and events. We have all seen our elementary school rooms decorated with pilgrims, indians,cornucopia,turkeys,ships,muskets and corn. We have all traced our hands for handprint turkeys. We have shared the long trek to visit relatives. We each also have our own personal traditions, stories, aromas, recipes, music, memories and menus that make the holiday our own.

I am particlarly thankful for the many blessings in my life. I am thankful for family and friends and in MY life, my friends are family. I am thankful for good health and the health of my loved ones. ( That sounds as if I am not thankful for the health of strangers and that is inaccurate). I am thankful for those who willingly give of their time and interest and love in participating in my life. I am thankful for receiving love. I am thankful for giving love. I am thankful for those who make me laugh. I am thankful for historical collections and historical preservation. I am thankful for insightful thoughtful writings and powerful images and life-changing performances. I am thankful for art museums and historical museums and photography and books. I am thankful for profound lyrics and fun lyrics and beautiful music. I am thankful for those willing to fight for justice, equality, human rights and tolerance. I am thankful for those who protect the environment in this  "New World". I am thankful for those persons who are no longer with us who have shaped my life and continue to guide my path. I am thankful for hugs that express deep affection. I am thankful for people who continue to write letters. I am thankful for the resilience of the human spirit most evident in Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly. I am thankful for their example. I am thankful for those who search for deeper meanings and question authority and are resolute in their quest. I am thankful for skeeball and sit-coms and purring cats and waterfalls and no, I am not about to break into song. I am thankful for vacations, festivals, celebrations, toasts and holidays. I am thankful for trips where we become Columbus-like in our searches for the undiscovered and new. I am thankful for the sounds of I Love You and children laughing . I am thankful for the NYPD and the NYFD and all those who rescue or save people in whatever ways they need saving. I am thankful for those who bring light into darkness. I am thankful for those who replace fear with calm and hope. I am thankful for pizza and football and all four seasons. I am thankful for cranberry bogs and cotton fields and vineyards and peanut fields. And of course, I am thankful for pumpkin pie. Gobble,gobble. It had to be said. Now play ball. And speaking of ball, the Butterball Hotline number is 1-800-BUTTERBALL. You're welcome.