By Barbara Wright
Since Thanksgiving was first celebrated in 1621, it has come to mean many things to people; a good chance to eat a fattening meal or a chance to see members of the family not seen often throughout the year. To most of us, however, it is a long week-end, a chance to get away from the ordinary.
We have many different people to thank for this long week-end, beginning with Governor William Bradford of Plymouth, Mass. He declared Dec. 13, 1621, to be a day of Thanksgiving and prayer. The custom was kept alive during the Revolutionary War, although not yet declared a legal holiday, when eight days of thanks were observed for victories and being saved from dan-gers. Then, when George Washington became President, he issued a general proclamation for a day of thanks. The first Thursday of November was declared a regular day of giving thanks that same year by the Episcopal Church.
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation setting aside the last Thursday of November as a day of thanks-giving and praise. The tradition was continued for 75 years as each President formally declared that Thanksgiving day should be celebrated on the last Thursday of November.
Then in 1939, the more practical President Roosevelt de-clared Thanksgiving to be celebrated one week earlier to give shoppers another week between Thanksgiving and Christmas. In 1941, Congress ruled that the fourth Thursday of November would be observed as Thanksgiving and be a legal holiday.
Since Thursday is near the end of the week, most of us have Friday off to go along with Thursday and thus a four-day week-end.
Now the burden of getting up early, studying far into the night and rushing around to meet deadlines should be lightened for four marvelous days. Unfortunately, upon arriving home at the start of vacation this bubble of luxury is soon burst, and we are forced into reality. The house is undoubtedly run down because there “just wasn’t time to keep it up”; the car is prob-ably run down, too, because there hasn’t been time for that either. Thank goodness for the time to take care of it now.
Most of us will celebrate Thanksgiving in the traditional way with turkey and dressing. There will also be the usual day after Thanksgiving feelings of “I shouldn’t have eaten so much” as you step on the scales, and “We will just about finish these left-overs in time for Christmas left-overs” as you survey the kitchen.
Of course, there are few, if any, people who would say that Thanksgiving was not worth it.
Upon returning to school Monday, don’t worry if the vacation seemed too short. After just three more weeks: class week, dead week and exam week, the semester will be over and an-other vacation will be here.