Giving thanks to First Neighbors

It must have been hard. To be surprised by foreign-tongued strangers arriving on your shores in foreboding ships exceeding both experience and imagination, armed with weapons far more terrifying and powerful than your own. To watch them settle permanently upon your land — an act that must have felt so threatening, and yet... The First Americans near Plymouth Colony brought food to those 50 pilgrims, joining to celebrate the harvest, hands outstretched in friendship. That spirit of common humanity is the lesson of Thanksgiving, which 90 Wampanaog Indians first shared with settlers in 1621. The tragedies which followed we acknowledge with sadness, but won’t dwell upon today. Today we simply give thanks, and celebrate Native American Heritage Month.

According to the Library of Congress, that celebration lasted three days, with feasting and friendly athletic competitions despite language barriers and cultural differences. In 1841, Dr. Alexander Young called it the “first thanksgiving,” hence the origin of an American tradition. Over the years it was celebrated in different months, long a national custom before becoming an official one. In 1846 an editor named Sarah Hale began a campaign to establish Thanksgiving Day as the last Thursday in November, which President Lincoln so proclaimed in 1863.

Some may forget the connection over turkey and stuffing, but Thanksgiving is intertwined with the rich cultures of Tribal Nations, who continue to contribute so much to this land and its communities, reminding us of the spiritual ties between. Many non-tribe members feel proud of their Native American heritage, connections, and family stories. As we hiked in the mountains my own grandfather taught me about respecting nature, in what he called “the Cherokee way.”

More than a century ago President Coolidge proclaimed an American Indian Day (in May); state celebrations ensued. However, it wasn’t until 1990 when President Bush approved a joint resolution of Congress that the commemoration became national, designating November as Native American Heritage Month. Like the Plymouth colonists in 1621, today we might also give thanks to our own neighbors and First Peoples, the Coeur d’Alene and Kootenai Tribes, for their cultural, financial, and personal contributions to North Idaho communities.

Remember the sky that you were born under, know each of the star’s stories...

Remember the sun’s birth at dawn, that is the strongest point of time. Remember sundown and the giving away to night...

Remember the earth whose skin you are: red earth, black earth, yellow earth, white earth

brown earth, we are earth.

Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their tribes, their families, their histories, too. Talk to them, listen to them. They are alive poems.

Remember the wind. Remember her voice. She knows the origin of this universe.

Remember you are all people and all people are you. — From “Remember” by Joy Harjo of the Mvskoke/Creek Nation

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Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network with Cherokee roots. Contact her at Sholeh@cdapress.com.