most people know that thanksgiving was established by abe lincoln
like 200 years ago, but why?
Thanksgiving is celebrated to remember the pilgrims making it through their first winter. They came to the new world in search of religious freedom. Which is very different from why the colonists at Jamestown settled. They settled for gold. They refused to take any help from the native americans and even called them savages.
The pilgrims, on the other hand, befriended the native americans and actually listened to them and learned from them. That's why they had a huge celebration with the different tribes. To celebrate togetherness and the love of God and of each other. Without the indians, the pilgrims would have probably resorted to what the jamestown people did. They resorted to cannibalism. None of them knew the first thing about farming, and their first winter was brutal, but the stubborn bastards still refused help from the "savages." Several died from disease and from frostbite. Eventually they couldn't take it anymore and started eyeballing the graveyard.
"there's bob's grave" they'd think, "he's dead, he wouldn't mind if i just took one of his arms, or his legs" and that's how it started.
It was the only thing that got them through the winter.
Because Plymouth was founded on Christian principles and by friendly people who viewed all races as equals, they survived without having to resort to such a drastic measure. Don't think that their first winter wasn't brutal, because it was. In fact, it was probably worse than Jamestown because it was in Maine.
A lot of people think that the Puritans were a bunch of intolerant kill-joys who hated little children and fun. But that's not true. When they landed there were i think 40 adults and 30 children. At the end of the winter there were STILL 30 children, but only 25 adults. What does that tell you?
But anyway, The pilgrims were so grateful to the Native Americans that forever afterwards they had a wonderful relationship and, in fat, they, themselves gathered every harvest after that to remember the hardships and the blessing of the native americans and their help.
So just remember to be thankful for all the things we take for granted nowadays.
yeah i know this one's a little lengthy, but check it out if you want.
