感恩节的由来 Thanksgiving Day is the most truly American of the national Holidays in the United States and is most closely connected with the earliest history of the country. In 1620, the settlers, or Pilgrims, they sailed to America on the May flower, seeking a place where they could have freedom of worship. After a tempestuous two-month voyage they landed at in icy November, what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts. During their first winter, over half of the settlers died of starvation or epidemics. Those who survived began sowing in the first spring. All summer long they waited for the harvests with great anxiety, knowing that their lives and the future existence of the colony depended on the coming harvest. Finally the fields produced a yield rich beyond expectations. And therefore it was decided that a day of thanksgiving to the Lord be fixed. Years later, President of the United States proclaimed the fourth Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day every year. The celebration of Thanksgiving Day has been observed on that date until today. The pattern of the Thanksgiving celebration has never changed through the years. The big family dinner is planned months ahead. On the dinner table, people will find apples, oranges, chestnuts, walnuts and grapes. There will be plum
pudding, mince pie, other varieties of food and cranberry juice and squash. The best and most attractive among them are roast turkey and pumpkin pie. They have been the most traditional and favorite food on Thanksgiving Day throughout the years. Everyone agrees the dinner must be built around roast turkey stuffed with a bread dressing to absorb the tasty juices as it roasts. But as cooking varies with families and with the regions where one lives, it is not easy to get a consensus on the precise kind of stuffing for the royal bird. Thanksgiving today is, in every sense, a national annual holiday on which Americans of all faiths and backgrounds join in to express their thanks for the year' s bounty and reverently ask for continued blessings. 11月的最后一个星期四是感恩节。感恩节是美国人民独创的一个古老节日，也是美国人合家欢聚的节日，因此美国人提起感恩节总是倍感亲切。 感恩节的由来要一直追溯到美国历史的发端。1620年，著名的“五月花”号船满载不堪忍受英国国内宗教迫害的清教徒102人到达美洲。1620年和1621年之交的冬天，他们遇到了难以想象的困难，处在饥寒交迫之中，冬天过去时，活下来的移民只有50来人。这时，心地善良的印第安人给移民送来了生活必需品，还特地派人教他们怎样狩猎、捕鱼和种植玉米、南瓜。在印第安人的帮助下，移民们终于获得了丰收，在欢庆丰收的日子，按照宗教传统习俗，移民规定了感谢上帝的日子，并决定为感谢印第安人的真诚帮助，邀请他们一同庆祝节日。
