Thanksgiving Day (感恩節(jié))

　　Thanksgiving Day is the most truly American of the national holidays in the United States and is most closely connected with the earliest history of the country.

　　In 1620, the settlers, or pilgrims, they sailed to America on the may flower, seeking a place where they could have freedom of worship. After a tempestuous two-month voyage they landed at in icy November, what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts

　　During their first winter, over half of the settlers died of starvation or epidemics. Those who survived began sowing in the first spring.

　　All summer long they waited for the harvests with great anxiety, knowing that their lives and the future existence of the colony depended on the coming harvest. Finally the fields produced a yield rich beyond expectations. And therefore it was decided that a day of thanksgiving to the lord be fixed.

　　Years later, president of the United States proclaimed the fourth Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day every year. The celebration of Thanksgiving Day has been observed on that date until today.

　　The pattern of the thanksgiving celebration has never changed through the years. The big family dinner is planned months ahead. On the dinner table, people will find apples, oranges, chestnuts, walnuts and grapes. There will be plum pudding, mince pie, other varieties of food and cranberry juice and squash.

　　The best and most attractive among them are roast turkey and pumpkin pie. They have been the most traditional and favorite food on Thanksgiving Day throughout the years.

　　Everyone agrees the dinner must be built around roast turkey stuffed with bread dressing to absorb the tasty juices as it roasts. But as cooking varies with families and with the regions where one lives, it is not easy to get a consensus on the precise kind of stuffing for the royal bird.

　　Thanksgiving today is, in every sense, a national annual holiday on which Americans of all faiths and backgrounds join in to express their thanks for the year's bounty and reverently ask for continued blessings.

　　感恩節(jié)

　　每逢11月第四個(gè)星期四，美國人迎來了自己最重要的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日感恩節(jié)。感恩節(jié)，原是清教徒為感謝上天賜與的好收成，同時(shí)，也表達(dá)了新英格蘭“移民”對(duì)印第安土著居民最初的謝意。如今，這一傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日更多意味著合家團(tuán)聚。感恩節(jié)特輯幫您了解一個(gè)全方位的“感恩節(jié)”。

　　11月的第四個(gè)星期四是感恩節(jié)。感恩節(jié)是美國人民獨(dú)創(chuàng)的一個(gè)古老節(jié)日，也是美國人合家歡聚的節(jié)日，因此美國人提起感恩節(jié)總是倍感親切。

　　感恩節(jié)的由來要一直追溯到美國歷史的發(fā)端。1620年，著名的“五月花”號(hào)船滿載不堪忍受英國國內(nèi)宗教迫害的清教徒102人到達(dá)美洲。1620年和 1621年之交的冬天，他們遇到了難以想象的困難，處在饑寒交迫之中，冬天過去時(shí)，活下來的移民只有50來人。這時(shí)，心地善良的印第安人給移民送來了生活必需品，還特地派人教他們?cè)鯓俞鳙C、捕魚和種植玉米、南瓜。在印第安人的幫助下，移民們終于獲得了豐收，在歡慶豐收的日子，按照宗教傳統(tǒng)習(xí)俗，移民規(guī)定了感謝上帝的日子，并決定為感謝印第安人的真誠幫助，邀請(qǐng)他們一同慶祝節(jié)日。

　　在第一個(gè)感恩節(jié)的這一天，印第安人和移民歡聚一堂，他們?cè)诶杳鲿r(shí)鳴放禮炮，列隊(duì)走進(jìn)一間用作教堂的屋子，虔誠地向上帝表達(dá)謝意，然后點(diǎn)起篝火舉行盛大宴會(huì)。第二天和第三天又舉行了摔交、賽跑、唱歌、跳舞等活動(dòng)。第一個(gè)感恩節(jié)非常成功。其中許多慶祝方式流傳了300多年，一直保留到今天。