Page 1
Mom and Dad were carving the turkey and preparing a
yummy salad in the kitchen. My brother Brett, was
watching football with my little sister TJ and I was
reading one of my favorite Thanksgiving books.
Page 2
All of a sudden, there was a knock
at the door. It was Grandma and
Grandpa! I ran to the door to give
them hugs and kisses.
Page 3
Grandpa rushed to go watch the game and Grandma sat next to me to chat, like we always do.
Page 4
"What are you reading, dear," said Grandma.
"I'm reading a book about the first Thanksgiving." I replied.
"You know with the Pilgrims and Native-Americans eating
turkey and pie and cranberry sauce from a can!"
Page 5
Grandma smiled. "You know, they
did have feasts of thanks back
then, but do you know the story
of the first Thanksgiving?"
Page 6
"I thought I did, but I guess not." I said.
"Well then" said Grandma, "let me tell
you the story of Sarah Josepha Hale,
the Mother of Thanksgiving."
Page 7
"Sarah was born in 1788 in Newport, New Hampshire. She was a very smart little girl. Always reading and writing. She didn't get to go to school like you do, because girls didn't go to school back then. Instead her mother taught her at home.
Page 8
"Sarah got married to David Hale in 1813. They read books together and encouraged each other to learn more about the world and all it had to offer."
Page 9
"In 1827, Sarah got her first job as an editor," said Grandma.
"What's an editor?" I interrupted.
"An editor is someone who reads other peoples' stories
and makes sure that they are good enough to let
other people read," Grandma explained.
"Ohhhh...I get it"
Page 10
"In that same year," said Grandma.
"1827, right?"
"Yes!" Grandma continued, "Sarah started telling people that there
should be an American holiday called Thanksgiving."
Page 11
"Over the next 36 years, Sarah wrote letters to congressmen,
senators, mayors even the President himself asking for a special
Thanksgiving holiday."
Page 12
"In the magazines she worked for she made sure that there were articles about this stupendous holiday. There were articles with recipes for special foods, ideas for decorating the table nicely and she asked people to invite over friends and family."
Page 13
"In Sarah's America, there were a lot of new people
coming from other countries. Those people were and
still are called immigrants. There was also some fighting
between different states. Sarah thought it would be great
to have one day, where the whole country could come
together and say 'Thank you' for all the wonderful things
we have by eating a roasted bird, having pumpkins
and gourds and eating squashes and pies."
Page 14
"Finally, in 1863 President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed that the
last Thursday of every November shall be a national day of Thanksgiving."
Page 15
"And that's what we do today!" I said, "I can't wait to share this in school on Monday!"
"Wonderful," Grandma said with a big toothy grin.
Page 16
"Dinner's ready," Mom called out.
Everyone came to the table and
we sat in our seats.
Page 17
"Before we begin," said Dad, "I would
like everyone to go around the table
and say what they are thankful for."
Page 18
"Football," joked Grandpa.
"Football," said Brett.
"Football," mimicked TJ.
Page 19
"Our wonderful family," said Mom and Dad together.
"Health and Happiness" said Grandma.
"And Kate, what are you thankful for?" asked Mom.
Page 20
"I am thankful for going to school. I am thankful for this food,
my family and I am thankful that Sarah Hale asked for this day
to be created so that we could all spend time together."
