Happy Thanksgiving Day

It is Thanksgiving Day is US today, though I am not an American citizen, I want to greet everybody a Happy Thanksgiving Day!

We have always heard of this special occasion, but do we really know what Thanksgiving Day is? A little quote from wikipedia:

Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a traditional North American holiday to give thanks for the things that one has at the conclusion of the harvest season. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States and on the second Monday of October in Canada.

The first Thanksgiving day occurred in Berkeley Plantation in Virginia in 1619, during the time of British Colonies when a group of 38 English settlers arrived at Virginia and that day was proclaimed as a day of Thanksgiving to God for their safe arrival. The original holiday was not really much of a feast but the popular occasion evolved as time goes by. Most families gather on this special day, even traveling from afar just to celebrate with their families. Today, the most popular symbol for Thanksgiving is turkey, not the country but a kind of fowl similar to chicken but much larger. The day is also known as turkey day for the main course of the Thanksgiving dinner is commonly cooked turkey.

Personally, I am afraid of turkey especially if alive and running towards me. When I was in back in grade school, my school has a backyard where different sorts of plants and some chickens were grown and raised for the nearby convent (my school is an all girls school). We knew there was a turkey locked in a cage because whenever the caretaker leaves the gate open, we would sneak in to see what is beyond the fence. One time, a friend and I sneaked in just for kicks then we saw the turkey out in his cage. The turkey was surprised to see us and became uneasy because of our presence. The turkey started chasing us and we ran and screamed all the way back to our classroom. I was so afraid because I saw how fast those long turkey legs can run. I realized that that turkey was not accustomed to human presence and so it became hysterical when it saw us and became more when it heard us screaming. I never liked turkeys since then.

The Filipino word for turkey is pabo in case you want to know. And if you were chased by a turkey too, I want to hear your story.