Thanksgiving feast

Thanksgiving is a big deal in kindergarten. They've been working up to it for weeks. They talk about Indians-- what tribe, how many, what they wore. Until my kids started preschool, I had never thought about what TRIBE of indians were a part of the feast. I just thought they were, you know, American. My bad.

They talk about pilgrims. In fact, my son thought dressing up today was a good idea, in case he decided to be a pilgrim. Pilgrims dress up in sweaters, apparently.

And, they choose. No one pressures them or labels them "pilgrim" or "indian" for the day-- oh no, we wouldn't want to offend anyone. So they get to pick. My son was debating his options at the dinner table last night. At least one of the advantages of being an indian wasn't being half-naked or anything.

They make thanksgiving turkeys with feathers that say what they are thankful for. (My daughter's said "swimming and seeds." Who knows what that means?)

If we made Thanksgiving nearly half as big a deal at home as they do at school, maybe we'd raise kids that know a little bit more about history and recognize what they have to be thankful for. I read a quote today that referred to being generally thankful as being a purely American trait. In most other cultures, they have very specific things for which to give thanks-- school. plumbing, clean water. I hope that this year at our house, we'll follow the school's example and give each person an opportunity to express genuine thanks for the blessings in his life.