Longmire Thankstaking
Chapter One
(Author's note: As we know from the books, Henry Standing Bear is a former Native American militant. Even in the television series that pops up. That got me to thinking about Thanksgiving and what it means. And what it would mean to First Americans. And so, this one chapter tale.)
It happens every year about this time. Someone mentions Thanksgiving to my friend Henry Standing Bear and Henry starts going off on "Thankstaking." He has a point. The Pilgrims, after the Indians helped keep them alive the first few winters, started killing off the Natives. The Pilgrims stole the land, claimed it as their own, and proceeded to treat Indians poorly from then on. Things really haven't changed. I understand and agree, but for Henry it's a Big Deal. And frankly, I'm rather tired of his rant.
So, early in November Cady invited Henry to her place where all of us were going to enjoy our turkey dinner. Henry started his usual rant, but Cady didn't let him keep going. "Henry," she interrupted, "I understand your dislike of the holiday. What can we do to make in enjoyable and to have you attend?"
This made him stop and think. Finally he answered, "I would like to not be the only Indian present. And while I appreciate all of you, it would be good to have some new faces. Hopefully people with some ability to talk intelligently."
"OK. Who from the Native community would you like me to invite? You know how small my place is."
"What about Daniel Running Elk, the Native Studies teacher at the high school? And maybe a couple other of the Indian teachers from the school?"
"I have no problem with that." None of the rest of us did either. Cady had a thought. "What about Molly Baker? She's the Social Studies teacher at the Rez. high school and and archery coach."
"Molly is good people. I would enjoy a chance to talk to her."
And so Thanksgiving Day arrived. Cady decided that the first topic of conversation was for all of us to come up with a more appropriate name for the holiday. Oh boy, that was a fun discussion. Cady and Henry were busy in the kitchen, which didn't help us any. Running Elk had pretty much the same opinion as Henry. Only he was more adamant about it.
What I didn't know was that he and Molly really don't get along. Henry told me later that Molly probably knows more history about the Cheyenne, but Running Elk knows more of the cultural stuff-for now. They really got into it. She kept trying to propose alternatives and he kept insisting that the white Thanksgiving should not be a national holiday. It was an insult to First Americans everywhere.
Vic and I mostly kept our mouths shut. Well, I did anyway. Vic kept tossing stuff in like having to give up Columbus day being an insult to Italian Americans.
I asked the other Indian teachers what they thought of all this? I got lots of shrugs until Mary Long Knife finally answered. "The Puritans were a bunch of ungrateful illegal immigrants. The legend about the first Thanksgiving is a nice one. Don't know if there's any truth to it though. But what the holiday has morphed into is a good thing. It's supposed to be a time to be with family and friends. To remind ourselves of what we have. And to be thankful."
About then the food started showing up. Everyone had outdone themselves with the food, as usual. Conversation was limited to "Could you please pass…"
It wasn't until after everyone had eaten their fill and we were all trying to make room for desert that we got back to the topic at hand. Cady decided to referee. We were able to agree that the story about the Pilgrims and the Indians needed to go away. And we promised to talk about Christopher Columbus another day. But what about the deeper meaning of the day? Did we need a day to remind ourselves to be grateful, to be thankful for what we have? I had forgotten that Canada has a Thanksgiving Day too. Only earlier in the year. They don't have the Indian baggage attached to their holiday. I suspect that if we did our research we'd find that other countries have similar customs.
That got me to thinking. "Henry, " I asked, "Don't the Cheyenne and the Lakota both have things they do to show their thanks?
"Why yes, we do. I was wondering when someone would think of that. Many Indian nations publicly show their gratitude. It is often a deeply held personal belief as well. We should be grateful to this world and how it provides for us."
Cady said, "So Henry, what should we call this holiday then?"
Henry looked around at all of us, white and red. "I think it should be called The Day for Giving of Thanks."