Creative Commons License

Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.

Photo by monkeybusiness on Depositphotos.com

Thanksgiving has been around since the 1500s,
1533 to be specific.
Late 1600s turnt into a holiday.
The act of giving thanks,
Prayer for expressing gratitude
And celebration of goodness.
Furnish up your dining room table with 2 through 12 chairs
With your valuable table cloth on it.
On top, your most expensive, gold plated or silverware.
Antique crystal cups with the chandelier lights hanging from the ceiling.
Surrounded by kin you see once a year for the occasion.
Every single person brings a dish, for the nourishment.
Prepare it good, make it look pretty.
Turkey in the middle, next to the ham.
Mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese, cranberry sauce and yams,
Bread rolls, greens, green beans and potato salad,
Cornbread and deviled eggs.
Each family is different and varies.
This is a brief menu of my Thanksgiving history.
Water, juice, soda, wine and hard liquor.
Every type of dessert available —
Mine and mommas icebox lemon pie.
Mingle, laugh, talk and greet family, loved ones, good friends and family associates.
Then, at the right moment, everything gets serious.
Like beating a spoon or a fork on a glass to get everyone’s attention;
Everyone hold hands and bow their heads.
One by one, everybody say what they’re thankful for,
Now that’s expressing gratitude,
Now that’s celebration of goodness,
Now that’s giving thanks.
In my family,
Now that’s what we call Thanksgiving.

Disclaimer: The views in this article are those of the author. Prison Journalism Project has verified the writer’s identity and basic facts such as the names of institutions mentioned.

E.D.H. is a poet who was raised in Compton in Los Angeles. He is currently incarcerated in California. He has asked to be published under his pen name.