Cooking the History Books: The Thanksgiving Massacre
It is so important to know the difference between true and invented history. I love a feast as much as all of us Americans, but I love people, too. I hate to blindly celebrate something that spits in the face of a people who deserve our apologies and respect, as well as a lot of repayment for wrongs that will never be righted. Take a couple of minutes to read this article (click link above) , if you will, and think about what our ancestors have done. How can we keep the gratitude alive within us, remain aware of the truth, and observe the less than beautiful times in our history in appropriate ways? This is not a rhetorical question. I would love to hear from anyone who has a thought.
I am looking forward to a delicious meal and to spending precious time with family tomorrow, and I love the reminder of thankfulness that has been written into the name of this holiday, but there will be a certain sobriety about me as I hold an awareness of how the holiday came about, and the ways in which traditions have evolved.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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2 comments:
Hi Ani, I've been thinking of you, wondering if you had any plans for tomorrow, especially if you'd have some time with family or not. I'm glad it sounds like you will! Thank you for sharing the Native American perspective on Thanksgiving--it was my first time to read about that. Sending a big hug your way!
Yes, sometimes it is hard to make sense of history. The people we read about seem to have so little in common with our values that we hold today ... and yet, there are always commonalities to see which show that humans really do have a species continuity that can surprise, charm or alarm us.
My personal choice for dealing with the past and its traditions is to both embrace and disavow all of those who have gone before as "my ancestors". In fact, no one of my bloodline could have been involved in a Thanksgiving massacre like that of the Pequots in 1637. My blood ancestors were busy involving themselves in other heinous crimes elsewhere, and in the day to day business of living and loving the best they could. So in that sense, none of my anscestors had anything to do with it. But I also consider all people of the past my ancestors. So, in that way I do have some "ownership" of past crimes ... kinda.
My bottom line is that I am only responsible for my own actions in this life right now. There is no need for me to apologize for what others have done. What there is a need for is for me to be the best, kindest, most compassionate, most courageous, most generous person I can be here and now.
In the here and now, there is a current tradition of Thanksgiving. It has a long and not altogether pleasant history but my celebrations of Thanksgivings in my lifetime are not nearly as connected to the past celebration of "Thanksgiving through the ages", but rather my own personal history with the date. So we have a family meal of autumnal goodies and we listen to Arlo Guthrie on CD and we stuff ourselves with the best of Scott's home cooking and memories and expressions of gratitude that come from our own small lives.
To me, it's ok to pull the best out of a tradition with a checkered past (name me a holiday that only ever been good, please) and get on with celebrating just because a celebration is good.
Of course I may hold this opinion due to my Dad (an ancestor for sure, right?). His opinion is that there is really no difference between "irrational ideas" like religious or political beliefs; they are all destructive and lead to genocide. Thus a Christmas tree is a symbol of the slippery slope that led to the Nazi holocaust and he is deeply offended whenever he sees one. (shrug)
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