Bei Bei's class celebrated a feast to commemorate the Pilgrim's meal of Thanksgiving they shared with the Native Americans who had assessed them through their arduous first winter in the New World. Bei Bei's class are the Native Americans. The second grade class are the pilgrims. Her required at home preparation was to make a vest out of a paper bag and adorn it with Native American symbols. She also had to bring in a gallon of apple juice. The classes donned their representational clothing, put on a short play and feasted on crackers and cheese and sausage cubes, and made real butter.
Bei Bei's take away comes in snippets that she shares at random times. This morning she told us as her sister buttered her English muffin, that if a pilgrim wanted butter they would have to make it, they couldn't just go somewhere and buy it.
We find that many customs and traditions of holidays are making a big impact on the girls. We certainly made an effort when we were in Asia to celebrate holidays, but many of the ways we celebrate in the United States are intrinsically American.
In China our Thanksgiving meals were either celebrated in Shanghai with Mr Johnson's good friend KR, who was in China every other year for a bi-annual trade show curiously held over Turkey day. When we were home in QD we got together with other friends and families from Mr J's company, and enjoyed a traditional meal that was sometimes augmented by Chinese treats.
We made a point to remind the girls about all we had to be tfor, and those feelings of thankfulness sometimes overwhelmed us. We were thankful for distant family, for friendships within China, and for the uniqueness of our experience.
We didn't, perhaps, put a lot of emphasis on the Pilgrims and Squanto.
Which might be why it has captured Bei Bei's interest so.
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