The First Thanksgiving

THE FIRST THANKSGIVING

November is Thanksgiving time, orange pumpkin pie,
Roasted turkey you can smell, leaves fall from the sky.
Thanksgiving didn't start that way. Perhaps you'd like to know,
About the first Thanksgiving feast, many years ago.

The year was 1621.  The harvest crop was fine.
The Pilgrims had to celebrate.  Autumn was the time.
They made friends with Indians, they found living there.
Indians and Pilgrims both, would bring food to share.

But the food they had to share, and ours are not the same.
Turkey, stuffing, pumpkin pie? Nothing quite so tame!
Pilgrims hunted birds called fowl.  They probably ate duck.
Indians hunted in the woods. They'd get a deer with luck.

Mashed potatoes? Not a chance. Corn was what they ate.
Because they lived right by the sea, shellfish filled their plates.
Though their food was not the same, there was a happy end.
They shared food with family, and gave thanks with friends.