In the Autumn of 1621, the Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrim settlers celebrated together a feast which we have come to know as "Thanksgiving.
" Only 53 survivors remained of the original 102 Pilgrims who made the perilous voyage.
About 90 Indians came with their king.
Whether or not turkey was served is open to debate, but "fowl" (probably duck) and deer were the main dish.
Two groups of very different people put aside their differences and joined together in what they had in common, the harvest.
That first Thanksgiving was a special moment and it deserves to be a holiday we can be proud of and learn from even in this modern era.
The Pilgrims left England because they were subject to persecution for their religion.
They came to this country for freedom.
Only by the grace of GOD and with the help of the Indians did the Pilgrims make it to Thanksgiving.
Fast forward 387 years later and the children in Claremont, California cannot even celebrate the day in honor of the Pilgrims and Indians.
For over 25 years the kindergarten kids of Condit Elementary School and Mountain View Elementary have celebrated thanksgiving by dressing up in costume and meeting together in celebration of this great holiday.
Now a small group of parents have complained and that tradition has been abandoned by the school administration.
The Pilgrims are now compared with "Nazis" or "Slave masters" and the Indians as "friendly Jews" or "slaves.
" We have become a nation of drowning in narcissism, whereby the few can punish the many for any perceived slight.
It is not what is intended, or even what occurs that matters, only the perception of the "victim.
" Our founding fathers were good men and they were visionaries in their time.
They were also a product of that time.
Hindsight is 20/20.
How can we hold all of our past history to today's standards? Is America a perfect country, no it is not.
Have we made mistakes in the past, yes we have.
Were the native peoples of North and South America defeated by Europeans, yes they were.
All human history is a saga of struggles with winners and losers.
One must not forget we fought a Civil War to end slavery and the good guys won! It took another hundred years to build upon that victory, but equality for all became a reality.
Instead of trashing our past and tearing down our history, we should cherish that first Thanksgiving.
The Pilgrims and the Indians on that day represent the best in us, not the worst.
Our past is not perfect, but it gave us our present: a free people who have put race aside and elected our first black President.
Freedom is what makes America great.
Free speech is key to all our freedoms.
We cannot let political correctness destroy our freedom.
If we do then George Orwell's nightmare will become our reality.
If Columbus is now a bad guy for discovering the New World and the Pilgrims are evil people, where does it end? I make no apology for the Pilgrims or Thanksgiving.
I am thankful to be born in the USA.
I also look forward to sharing the holiday with all those from across the globe who came here for citizenship because they wanted to enjoy the freedom only America can give.
I pity the narrow minded folks who would ruin this holiday for our children and take away the true spirit of that first Thanksgiving Day.