God has given us so much - flowers and trees, mountains and rivers, sun and moon, fruits and vegetables, skies and stars. We admire them and relish them but we hardly take time to thank God for all He has given us. Thanksgiving Day is one such day assigned to take time out of our hectic lives and share the gifts God has given us with our family and friends and thank God for his benevolence. Besides family gatherings and holiday meals, the chief highlights of the Thanksgiving festival are stuffed turkeys as the main dish on the dinner table with pumpkin pies as the desserts, giant balloons and holiday parades and the Thanksgiving gifts.

The national holiday of United States, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November every year. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated to commemorate the harvest of the Plymouth Colony in 1621 that spelt life after the sufferings of starvation in the long winter draught. The then Governor William Bradford assigned the day as the Thanksgiving Day and a great feast was prepared, which was shared by the colonists as well as the neighboring Native Americans.

There were similar observances held sporadically but it was after the American Revolution that George Washington proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving Day on November 26th, 1789. Abraham Lincoln revived the custom is 1863 and appointed the last Thursday of November as the Thanksgiving Day. The customary turkey dinner is served in the remembrance of the wild fowls or turkeys that were served at the Pilgrims' first thanksgiving feast. Happy Thanksgiving!