Yes, there are reasons to be cynical about Thanksgiving. But there's also turkey

"It's easy to be cynical about Thanksgiving. The origin story that we're all told of a friendly exchange of food between the pilgrims and the Native Americans is, at best, a whitewashed oversimplification. And then there's Black Friday, an event that has hijacked one of our few non-commercialised holidays and used it as the impetus for a stressful, shameless, consumerist frenzy."

"Even as we recognise that these stories may not always be true, we have to keep telling them. They set standards for us to live up to. Every year when I was a kid, my mom used to make a Thanksgiving tree. It was fashioned out of brown construction paper and taped to the window, and we'd all add little green leaves inscribed with something we were thankful for."

Thanksgiving's origin story is a whitewashed oversimplification of early encounters between pilgrims and Native Americans. Black Friday has turned a largely non-commercial holiday into a stressful consumerist frenzy. Political turmoil and national excess make feeling gratitude difficult for many Americans. The inclusive national myth of a melting pot still serves as a standard to aspire to despite historical inaccuracies. Family rituals can reclaim the day as a gratitude practice, such as creating a Thanksgiving tree with leaves listing thanksgivings. The holiday also celebrates comforting food; turkey is essential, with practical cooking advice: cook crown and legs separately, confit legs in butter with herbs, roast crown to 65°C (149°F), or smoke if possible.

Read at www.theguardian.com