Giving Thanks - Thanksgiving Poem!

For the hay and the corn and the wheat that is reaped,
For the labor well done, and the barns that are heaped,
For the sun and the dew and the sweet honeycomb,
For the rose and the song and the harvest brought home --
Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving!

For the trade and the skill and the wealth in our land,
For the cunning and strength of the workingman's hand,
For the good that our artists and poets have taught,
For the friendship that hope and affection have brought --
Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving!

For the homes that with purest affection are blest,
For the season of plenty and well-deserved rest,
For our country extending from sea unto sea;
The land that is known as the "Land of the Free" --
Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving!
-  Author Unknown

The Little Pilgrim - Thanksgiving Poem

Cranberries dripping down my chin
Have stained my pilgrim suit.
I ate too much Thanksgiving day
But I don't give a hoot.

I slurped a pile of dressing,
Gobbled down a turkey thigh,
Dribbled messy cranberries
Devoured some pumpkin pie.

Within me on this special day
It's a thankful heart that beats.
For all the things that I enjoy
But mainly for the eats.
- Author Unknown

Short jokes - Thanksgiving!

Q: Why did they let the turkey join the band?
A: Because he had the drumsticks

Q: What did the mama turkey say to her naughty son?
A: If your papa could see you now, he'd turn over in his gravy!

Q: What did the turkeys sing on Thanksgiving Day?
A: God save the kin.

Q: Which side of the turkey has the most feathers?
A: The outside

Q: Why did the police arrest the turkey?
A: They suspected it of fowl play

Q: What's the key to a great Thanksgiving dinner?
A: The turKEY

Q: What did the turkey say before it was roasted?
A: Boy! I'm stuffed!

Q: Why can't you take a turkey to church?
A: Because they use such FOWL language

Q: What's the best dance to do on Thanksgiving?
A: The turkey trot

Q: What do you get when you cross a turkey with an octopus?
A: Enough drumsticks for Thanksgiving

Q: Who is not hungry at Thanksgiving?
A: The turkey because he's already stuffed!

Q: In what country is Thanksgiving ironically not celebrated?
A: Turkey.

Q: What do you wear to Thanksgiving dinner?
A: A Har- VEST.

Q: What do Thanksgiving and Halloween have in common?
A: One has gobblers, the other goblins.

A Thanksgiving Poem!

The tear another's tears bring forth,
The sigh which answers sigh,
The pulse that beats at other's woes,
E'en though our own be nigh,

A balm to bathe the wounded heart
Where sorrow's hand hath lain,
The link divine from soul to soul
That makes us one in pain,

Sweet sympathy, benignant ray,
Light of the soul doth shine;
In it is human nature giving, A touch of the divine.

                                                   - Author Unknown

Pro Football Turkey

The pro football team had just finished their daily practice session when a large turkey came strutting onto the field.

While the players gazed in amazement, the turkey walked up to the head coach and demanded a tryout.

Everyone stared in silence as the turkey caught pass after pass and ran right through the defensive line.

When the turkey returned to the sidelines, the coach shouted, "You're terrific!!! Sign up for the season, and I'll see to it that you get a huge bonus."

"Forget the bonus," the turkey said, "All I want to know is, does the season go past Thanksgiving Day?"

Fun Facts about the First Thanksgiving

• The Plymouth Pilgrims were the first to celebrate the Thanksgiving.
• The Pilgrims sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to reach North America.
• They sailed on the ship, which was known by the name of 'Mayflower'.
• They celebrated the first Thanksgiving Day at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
• The Wampanoag Indians were the people who taught the Pilgrims how to cultivate the land.
• The Pilgrim leader, Governor William Bradford, had organized the first Thanksgiving feast in 1621. He invited the neighboring Wampanoag Indians to the feast.
• The first Thanksgiving celebration lasted three days.
• Mashed potatoes, pumpkin pies, popcorn, milk, corn on the cob, and cranberries were not foods present on the first Thanksgiving's feast table.
• The pilgrims didn't use forks; they ate with spoons, knives, and their fingers.
• Lobster, rabbit, chicken, fish, squashes, beans, chestnuts, hickory nuts, onions, leeks, dried fruits, maple syrup and honey, radishes, cabbage, carrots, eggs, and goat cheese are thought to have made up the first Thanksgiving feast.

Fun Facts about Thanksgiving Today

• In the US, about 280 million turkeys are sold for the Thanksgiving celebrations.
• Each year, the average American eats somewhere between 16 - 18 pounds of turkey.
• Californians are the largest consumers of turkey in the United States.
• Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States.
• Although, Thanksgiving is widely considered an American holiday, it is also celebrated on the second Monday in October in Canada.
• Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States, where it is the beginning of the traditional Christmas shopping season.

Fun Turkey Facts

· The average weight of a turkey purchased at Thanksgiving is 15 pounds.

·   The heaviest turkey ever raised was 86 pounds, about the size of a large dog.

·    A 15 pound turkey has about 70 percent white meat and 30 percent dark meat.

·   Turkey has more protein than chicken or beef.

·   Turkeys will have 3,500 feathers at maturity.

·  Male turkeys gobble. Hens do not. They make a clucking noise.

·   Commercially raised turkeys cannot fly.

·   A large group of turkeys is called a flock.

·   Turkeys have poor night vision.

·   It takes 75-80 pounds of feed to raise a 30 pound tom turkey.

Thanksgiving Trivia

Thanksgiving Day is a very important day in the United States. There are many things that are especially related to the celebrations of the Thanksgiving Day. Some of such facts are mentioned here which will not only help you enhance your knowledge about Thanksgiving Day but also make you enjoy this day with even more zeal.

1. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States.
2. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October in Canada.
3. The Plymouth Pilgrims were the first to celebrate the Thanksgiving.
4. The pilgrims arrived in North America in December 1620.
5. The Pilgrims sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to reach North America.
6. The pilgrims sailed on the ship, which was known by the name of 'Mayflower'.
7. They celebrated the first Thanksgiving Day in the fall of 1621.
8. They celebrated the first Thanksgiving Day at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
9. The drink that the Puritans brought with them in the Mayflower was the beer.
10. The Wampanoag Indians were the people who taught the Pilgrims how to cultivate the land.
11. The Pilgrim leader, Governor William Bradford, had organized the first Thanksgiving feast in the year 1621 and invited the neighboring Wampanoag Indians also to the feast.
12. The first Thanksgiving feast was held in the presence of around ninety Wampanoag Indians and the Wampanoag chief, Massasoit, was also invited there.
13. The first Thanksgiving celebration lasted three days.
14. President George Washington issued the first national Thanksgiving Day Proclamation in the year 1789 and again in 1795.
15. The state of New York officially made Thanksgiving Day an annual custom in 1817.
16. Sarah Josepha Hale, an editor with a magazine, started a Thanksgiving campaign in 1827 and it was result of her efforts that in 1863 Thanksgiving was observed as a day for national thanksgiving and prayer.
17. Abraham Lincoln issued a 'Thanksgiving Proclamation' on third October 1863 and officially set aside the last Thursday of November as the national day for Thanksgiving. Whereas earlier the presidents used to make an annual proclamation to specify the day when Thanksgiving was to be held.
18. President Franklin D. Roosevelt restored Thursday before last of November as Thanksgiving Day in the year 1939. He did so to make the Christmas shopping season longer and thus stimulate the economy of the state.
19. Congress passed an official proclamation in 1941 and declared that now onwards Thanksgiving will be observed as a legal holiday on the fourth Thursday of November every year.
20. Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be the national bird of the United States. But it was Thomas Jefferson who opposed him. It is believed that Franklin then named the male turkey as 'tom' to spite Jefferson.
21. The annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade tradition began in the 1920's.
22. Californians are the largest consumers of turkey in the United States.
23. When the Pilgrims arrived in North America, the clothing of the Native Americans was made of animal skins (mainly deer skin).
24. On December 11, 1620 the first Pilgrims (or Puritans, as they were initially known) landed at Plymouth Rock.
25. By the fall of 1621 only half of the pilgrims, who had sailed on the Mayflower, survived. The survivors, thankful to be alive, decided to give a thanksgiving feast.

Blonde Thanksgiving!

It was the first time the blonde was eating Thanksgiving dinner without her family. Trying to re-enact the tradition, she prepared a dinner for herself alone. The next day, her mother called to see how everything went.

"Oh, mother, I made myself a lovely dinner, but I had so much trouble trying to eat the turkey!" said the daughter.

"Did it not taste good?" her mother asked.

"I don't know," the blonde said. "It wouldn't sit still!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Joke - Anyone We Know?!!