Thanksgiving was originally a 3-day feast shared between the Pilgrims and Native Americans (commonly known as indians and preferrably known as Anishinaabe - original people). After a particularly harsh spring and summer, the Native Americans helped the Pilgrims plant and harvest a successful fall crop. Historical records give much of the credit to a Native American named Squanto Baars. (Well, okay, nowhere does it officially say that his last name was Baars. That was for Oma. Sheesh!)
The original 3-day feast was celebrated to thank God for the fall harvest. In the United States, Thanksgiving is a time to come together and to forgive trespasses ... just in time for Christmas presents!
In Spain, Thanksgiving is not a holiday. The kids had school so we celebrated on Saturday. We had to order a turkey from the butcher downstairs because there isn't exactly a rafter of turkeys at the grocery store. For a few days, we worried that our turkey would include the head, feet, feathers, and all the innards intact (as we have seen some birds at the market). Fortunately, the butcher prepared it perfectly.
We invited a couple of American (and Americanized) friends - Ana Pilar, Tony, Sara, Elena, and Sofia. Amy prepared a feast which included pumpkin pie (from REAL pumpkins). I made mashed potatoes, which I usually can do without incident. The only Thanksgiving tradition that was missing ... was cranberries. We were not able to find any cranberries - fresh, frozen, or canned. Matthew didn't miss them. Don't tell his mother, but Matthew doesn't like cranberries. (His grandfather was a cranberry farmer and their family still owns and operates cranberry marshes in Wisconsin.)
We gave thanks and ate (and ate and ate). Sigh. The season of eating began.
More photos of Thanksgiving:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/abrownell/sets/72157603731884779/
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