Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruits of our labor. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which we brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty.
- Edward Winslow, Mourt's Relation (courtesy: Wikipedia)
How touching. Over the next two hundred years, we will butcher your people, kill all your buffalo, decimate the natural environment that you've lived in harmony with for centuries and eventually restrict what's left of your tribes to a few scattered pieces of land, but meanwhile, have some more stuffing.
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Is it just me, or do other people think that celebrating harvest festivals is a little redundant now? "We thank thee lord for this bountiful supermarket cart and for the 5% discount that thy Grace and the possession of a Fresh Grocer card have brought us".
Personally, I think we should move Thanksgiving to the close of the financial year, where every company should celebrate another year of meeting earnings estimates with sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie and an analyst roasted in gravy.
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6 comments:
Amen. And let's not even get into the stuffing lists.
:D I heartily secod, or third, this proposal, Great K. But now I have to go eat my turkey. May you too be turkey-fied today.
Harvest Festivals are relavant as long as harvests remain dependent on variables beyond human control. So its just you, and of course a few others :-)
Even if life revolves round money, it all boils down to a square meal.
unrelated to the post, but you know, despite the pseudonym, for the longest time i thought you were a woman. lovely writing...
tr: :-).
sashi: Glad you agree. No turkey for me though. You think I could start a new PhD tradition of having Ramen for Thanksgiving?
anon: Fair enough, though you would think this would mean that how we celebrate the festival would depend on how the harvest actually turned out. I'm not sure how true that is.
anon2: Thanks. That really is a compliment. What convinced you that I wasn't, just btw?
good on you that you take it as a compliment! it is meant to be one.
i would've continued to think you were , falstaff, but for the fact that one of your posts (poet,birdwatcher....) you meantioned that being all those things didnt get you favour with women. thats not conclusive, but i saw some other places were you were referred to as 'he'. from your writing, i'd never have known...! i'm a woman , by the way...
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