WISH I COULD QUIT THANKSGIVING

Thanksgiving, I wish I could quit you!
I love good food but I refuse to go rogue when so many of my brothers and sisters are doing their best to hold up the light.
"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path." (Psalm 119:105) 
How many of us are going to celebrate Thanksgiving in the dark this year? 
I am going to share the real deal of the underbelly of this monstrosity we call Thanksgiving in hopes to shed light on what we can actually be thankful for. Take what you can and leave the rest, but please take something. 
First, its evolution began in 1621 as a three day feast. Then it was proclaimed as a "Thanksgiving" after the 1637 massacre of Pequots. 'Damn, we just murdered a bunch of Natives, let's eat.' 
Second, the history books were cooked so you could pull out a roasted, well buttered piece of bird rather than the bloody skinless carcass of a First American. 
Third, we don't share these truths at the gatherings we have. I'd venture to say we don't even talk. I've been to my fair share of hosted festivities and there is a plethora of maneuvers created to avoid any real conversation and plenty of booze to lubricate the illusion that we're free. And, big screens are everywhere so no real eye contact has to be made. 
Fourth, we refuse to acknowledge that the Wampanoag Indians were living in the area where the Mayflower landed. They had been living there for thousands of years. For all you evangelicals out there, this is the birth place of your "Blab it, grab it" theology. Pilgrims, well meaning Christians (me being rogue), saw something that wasn't theirs, pretended it was a discovery, then blabbed it was theirs and the grabbing hasn't stopped. 
Fifth, history is never simple. Your story is never going to sound exactly like my story. I don't think that's the purpose. For example, President Lincoln officially declared Thanksgiving official in 1863, the same year he had 36 Sioux Indians hung on Christmas Eve. You honestly think that the Pilgrims and First Americans were passing corn plates to one another? We live in a time where we're more interested in proliferating fake news than we are real news. Another example, "the Holocaust never happened."
Holy hell, if hell were real I believe it would be holy, we have agendas embedded in our agendas. Our goal seems to be emotional massacre. We don't let up, do we? I have one question for you:
What's in it for you?
We have addictions like nobody's business and I'm ready to wager that you'll see some of those "self wills run riot" this holiday, if not from within than from the company you keep. We're so addicted to our thinking and believing. At least I am. I'll be honest, it took me awhile to be comfortable living in happiness. But I'm here and there is no going back for me. 
Whomever you gather with this Thanksgiving, know this: What you think about your life is the cause of all of your joy and pain. I know the creation story of my ancestors. I share it whenever I can but I don't drop it like it's hot. No, the creation story of the Dinetah people is sacred. I have a duty to treat all my relations with an affection that is not of this world. Native communities have a decorum that is not fake or self serving. Trust me. We understand that stories hold life. We speak life when we share our stories. 
Hold your light, hold it high. There is only one you. You have a story, you are a gift to your beloveds. If you're ornery, make a point to be kind and generous with your beauty this Thanksgiving. There are so many creation stories out there. Share one that has meaning for you. Refuse to share the colonizers' story, even if you're a colonizer. Do me a solid, would ya? Make it a point to create life rather than perpetuate the darkness. I know there is loneliness being spread like a cancer and if you're feeling it, I'm holding a light for you. I want you to make your way out of the darkness.

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