TEXT A In the United States, the
fourth Thursday in November is called Thanksgiving Day. On this day, Americans
give thanks for the blessing they have enjoyed during the year. Thanksgiving is
usually a family day celebrated with big dinners and happy reunion.
The first American Thanksgiving was held in Plymouth, Massachusetts in
1621. It was in September of 1620 that the Puritans, or Pilgrims
as they called themselves, left England aboard the Mayflower in search of
religious freedom. After 65 days at sea, they landed in Province town Harbor,
inside the tip of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. For about a month,
the Pilgrims lived aboard ship and then sailed to Plymouth Harbor.
The Pilgrims were not trained and equipped to cope with life in the
wilderness. During their first winter, they suffered tremendously. Hard work,
diseases, bitterly cold weather, and insufficient food killed about half of
them. By the end of this terrible first winter, only about 50 Plymouth colonists
remained alive. In spring 1621, the Indians of Massasoil’s tribe
taught the Pilgrims how to hunt, fish, and grow food. They taught the Pilgrims
to use fish for fertilizer when growing corn, pumpkins, and beans. Because of
this help from the Indians, the Pilgrims had a good harvest.
William Bradford, the governor chosen by the Pilgrims, was following an
ancient tradition when, in the fall of 1621, he established a day of
Thanksgiving to God. He invited Chief Massasoil and his men to share the
Thanksgiving feast. The Indians gladly accepted and sent deer
meat for the feast. The Pilgrim men went hunting and returned with turkey and
other wild animals. The women of Plymouth prepared delicious dishes from corn,
berries, squash and pumpkins. The first Thanksgiving dinner was
cooked and served out-of- doors. Although it was late autumn, huge fires kept
the hosts and guests warm. Many of the traditions of the modern
American Thanksgiving come from that first Thanksgiving celebration. Today’s
Thanks giving turkey is much like the ones that were hunted in the forests
around Plymouth. Squash and corn, which were also harvested by the early
Pilgrims, appear on the Thanksgiving table. Pumpkin pie is a traditional
Thanksgiving dessert. Every year, about 500,000 Americans take a
journey into early American history by visiting Plymouth, a modern city that
respects its past. In Plymouth Harbor, sightseers tour Mayflower Ⅱ, a
recently built ship similar to the original Mayflower. Then they spend a few
hours walking through a reproduction of the original Pilgrim village. Modern
Americans take great pride in these courageous ancestors who had so little by
today’s standards, but who were thankful for receiving the things they valued
most--a good harvest and the freedom to live and worship as they
pleased. The Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day to show their gratitude to ______.