Have you ever wondered why Americans gather around the table
each year and prepare to eat food regarded as traditional, but
rarely assembled as a meal the rest of the year? Turkey, gravy,
corn, stuffing, cranberries and pies take center stage on
Thanksgiving. But Thanksgiving also stands out from other
American holidays in the sense that it isn't tied to any
specific religion, and you can pretty much celebrate it however
you want. The only essential traditions are to enjoy a meal with
friends or family and to give thanks for what you have. In the
pantheon of holidays, Thanksgiving is about as simple as it
gets. The holiday also honors American history, of course. In
countless Thanksgiving plays, American children have told the
story of the first Thanksgiving when the Pilgrims and the
American Indians celebrated the autumn harvest in cooperation
and acceptance. Have you ever wondered where the particulars of
this story and the other details of Thanksgiving actually come
from? In this article, we'll look at the