What does Thanksgiving mean to you?

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     Thanksgiving is an annual national holiday in the United States and Canada celebrating family and friends and any other blessings the year has brought.
     The first Thanksgiving was a celebration by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New world in October of 1621. The celebration was attended by ninety Native Americans and fifty three Pilgrims and lasted three days
     Since then, Thanksgiving has been celebrated nationally on and off since 1789. It is always on the fourth Thursday of November.
     Every family celebrates Thanksgiving differently and in their own way. Some have traditions they like to do, certain foods they like to cook, some even fly or drive to go visit family.
     Jake leuer, has his own Thanksgiving family traditions.
     “We try to go down to Los Angeles every year to visit family. I really like going because I get to see my family and go shopping around the city,” said Leuer(11).
     There’s many dishes that make up the Thanksgiving menu. The most popular and common among these dishes turkey,gravy, pie, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and green beans.
     Annabelle Irwin loves Thanksgiving and enjoys helping her mom cook during the holiday. Her favorite part of the day is sitting down with family and being grateful for what everyone has.
     “I grew up watching my mom cook food for Thanksgiving so I like to help my mom cook now. My favorite dish is definitely just Turkey with some gravy,” said Irwin(11)
     With Thanksgiving coming up, means Black friday is also coming. Black Friday is commonly known as the unofficial start to the holiday shopping season. Almost every retail store participates in Black Friday and marks down the prices of a lot of items.
     The deals used to start at midnight on Thanksgiving but as the years went on, the time started to get earlier and earlier. Some stores open at 5p.m.-8p.m. which is around the time most families are giving thanks and eating.
     Ryan Nazir has done Black Friday a couple times but stopped because the stores he likes opened when he was eating with his family.
     “I feel like Black Friday kinda ruins the night cause some people want to leave dinner early or want to end early so they can go shopping and get their deals,” said Nazir(11).
    Although Thanksgiving means great food and leftovers for days, the real meaning will always be a time to spend with family and friends and give thanks for the blessings in your life.