Turkey Toons!
Cartoons, Quotes, and the remarkable First Thanksgiving
A went to the freezer and thawed out a couple of my old Sketchbook Silliness cartoons:
Story Time: The Remarkable Tale of Squanto and the Pilgrims
On a more serious note, I was reading up on the First Thanksgiving. I was surprised to find out there is more to the story than we often hear.
The First Thanksgiving took place after the Pilgrims had suffered a very bleak and deadly year. The Mayflower journey was brutal. For 66 days they were stuck on a freezing, wet, cramped ship plagued with seasickness, rats, and mold. They arrived in a cold November with no homes, no crops, and very little food—just as one of the coldest winters on record was about to hit. During that first winter about half of the 102 colonists died from exposure, scurvy, and pneumonia. At one point only six or seven colonists were healthy enough to care for all the rest.
It was only with the help of the Wampanoag Indians that they were able to survive. Remarkably, one of the Indians, a man named Squanto, spoke English and knew their customs. Squanto had once been kidnapped by an English explorer and taken to Spain to be sold as a slave, but he escaped with the help of some Catholic friars. He traveled to England and was taken in by John Slaney, a Christian merchant who taught him English and gave him an education. After several years in Europe, Squanto finally secured passage back home only to discover his entire tribe had been wiped out by an epidemic.
Alone and without a people, Squanto connected with some English traders and eventually with the newly arrived Plymouth colonists. Because he spoke English fluently and understood both cultures, even the Pilgrim’s Christian religion, Squanto was indispensable to helping the settlers survive and to communicate with the local Wampanoag tribe. He taught the Pilgrims how to plant corn, where to fish, and how to use the local resources. Working as a guide, translator, and negotiator, Squanto acted as a key cultural bridge between the two groups. Without his help, the Pilgrim colony almost certainly would have collapsed.
The Wampanoag benefitted as well. After suffering devastating losses from a recent epidemic, they welcomed the Pilgrims as allies against rival tribes. The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag, recognizing that they needed each other, singed a treaty of mutual defense and friendship that would last for 50 years.
The Pilgrims and Squanto had both suffered greatly. And yet, remarkably, after spending a year together including a successful harvest, they joined for a three-day celebration of gratitude to God. The colonists and Indians feasted and played games. After enduring catastrophe, death, and near collapse, the Pilgrims were thankful for their survival, for a strong harvest, and for what, at the time, was a peaceful alliance with the Wampanoag.
Sometimes life is bright and colorful and we have a lot to be thankful for. Other times it is dark and gray and we might barely give thanks for making it through another day. Wherever you are at, I hope you have something to pause and be thankful for and can look forward to brighter days to come.
Turkey Tidbits
Finally, here’s a list of Thanksgiving quotes I found that might brighten your day:
“My socks may not match, but my feet are always warm.”
— Maureen McCullough
“An optimist is a person who starts a new diet on Thanksgiving Day.”
— Irv Kupcinet
“Thanksgiving, man. Not a good day to be in my pants.”
— Kevin James
“Hope gives birth to thanksgiving and thanksgiving to joy. It doesn’t spread as fast as a cold, but pretty close.”
— Phil Callaway
“What if, today, we were grateful for everything?”
— Charlie Brown
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