Thanksgiving~

While Thanksgiving is not a major holiday in Taiwan, it is a pretty important holiday in America.

One of the biggest and warmest holidays of the United States, Thanksgiving has its history and origin way back in centuries. There are various instances of thanksgiving observances in history, all of which bear resemblance to the modern celebrations of Thanksgiving; but the generally accepted and circulated view is that the modern day American Thanksgiving has its origin in 1621, when the Pilgrims, or the English settlers and the Native Americans celebrated a three-day long feast in Plymouth, Massachusetts. But quite contrary to this popular belief, the Pilgrims were never the first to have a Thanksgiving feast. Feasts celebrating a good harvest existed well before the Pilgrims or the settlers arrived. Nevertheless, it's true that these Pilgrims held a Thanksgiving feast (more aptly, a feast to say 'thanks') in the first year of their survival in America.

In America, Thanksgiving always brings about a Thanksgiving feast!! We have mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, cornbread, green bean casserole, and (of course) TURKEY!! We would gather around the dinner table with our loved ones, eat our fill, and give thanks for all the good things that happened that year.

In Taiwan, while it may be hard to find all the ingredients for a Thanksgiving feast, I hope we can all give thanks to all the good things that happened to us this year.

I am thankful for...

My family

My students

The WES International staff

and most of all...

YOU (the parent!)

Thank you for making my year wonderful,

Ms. Chen