Thanksgiving Proclamations and thoughts

As we prepare to host two separate Thanksgiving dinners:

Remembering the Pilgrims.

The first national Thanksgiving day was a day of fasting and prayer.

Thanksgiving proclamations by Washington, Lincoln, Adams, Madison and other presidents (on subsequent pages). Dennis Prager usually reads one of the proclamations on his radio show on Thanksgiving, at the perfect time to listen while cooking.

I like to pick one to read before the prayer on Thanksgiving. Shortened, if necessary, when children might get restless. Unfortunately, I don't have a Spanish translation of any of them, and some of the language is quite unfamiliar to us today. Guess we'll muddle through.

An interesting historical note: a speech given on the day Lincoln issued his famous proclamation - scroll down.

Our friend Brandy reminded us not too long ago that the ancient Feast of the Tabernacles was the antecedent to our Thanksgiving celebrations. Here's a Jewish perspective on Thanksgiving: "Our gratitude to God must express itself in the actions of our daily life. Giving back the "first of our fruit," the choicest share of the crop, is the only appropriate way to thank God for giving us all our fruit."

Have a happy Thanksgiving.