organizations offer a traditional T hanksgiving meal to those in need, particularly to the homeless.On most tables throughout the United States, foods eaten at the first thanksgiving have become traditional.
One very significant thing about the Thanksgiving meal is the Thanksgiving Symbols. Each Thanksgiving symbol has a story and holds a place in the history. With changing times many changes have been there in these thanksgiving symbols .
So let's learn more about these unique Thanksgiving Symbols that have been prevalent from the first thanksgiving .
TURKEY 
Turkey and Thanksgiving have gone together since the days of the Pilgrims. No thanksgiving feast is considered to be complete without a turkey in the main course nor is any celebration without a Turkey song. We know wild turkeys lived in New England. In fact, many people, including Ben Franklin, wanted to make the turkey the national bird instead of the bald eagle! Domestic turkeys like the ones we eat today were brought to America by English settlers.
CORN 
Corn, or maize, was the first of the Indian Three Sisters. It is native to America. Corn came in many varieties-red, yellow, white, blue, and yellow. Native Americans may have been growing it for hundreds of years before the Europeans arrived. The Pilgrims had never seen it in England. It was new to their diet, but they might have starved without it. Corn was certainly part of their first harvest festival. Today, when we prepare sweet corn and cornbread, it reminds us of the importance of corn to the Pilgrims' survival. Indian corn has become a symbol of the harvest and the long and wonderful Thanksgiving heritage.
PUMPKINS
Pumpkins and squash together were the second of the Indian Three Sisters. The Pilgrims were introduced to the pumpkin by their Native American neighbors, and it has been a part of Thanksgiving ever since. Although we don't eat pumpkin very often anymore, the first |
Americans ate it all the time. Pumpkins were easy to grow and would last a long time in the cellar during the winter. The all-American pumpkin has been a Thanksgiving favorite for just about 400 years!
BEANS 
Beans were the third of the Indian Three Sisters. These Native American beans were called pole beans, because their stems need to cling to a pole for support. That is why Squanto taught the Pilgrims to plant the beans next to cornstalks. As the beans grew, they used the cornstalks as their poles.
CRANBERRIES 
Cranberries should have been called a fourth Indian sister! Cranberries were originally called "crane berries" because the plant's pink blossoms looked like a crane's head. They grew wild in bogs along the New England coast. Squanto showed the Pilgrims where to find cranberries and how to dry them for the winter. As soon as the Pilgrims figured out how to sweeten the bitter little berries with maple sugar, they started making cranberry sauce. Squanto also showed them how to make maple sugar with sap from maple trees. Cranberry sauce has been a turkey's favorite Thanksgiving partner ever since!
CORNUCOPIA 
One of the most prominent Thanksgiving symbols, the cornucopia, actually dates back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. The term (generally describing a horn-shaped basket filled with fruit, flowers and other goodies) comes from the Latin cornu copiae, literally "horn of plenty." In Greek mythology, the cornucopia is a severed goat's horn, enchanted by Zeus to produce a never-ending supply of whatever the owner desires. People decorate their tables with a horn - shaped baskets filled fruits and usually a pumpkin too.
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