S.E. Ruckman: How we celebrate Thanksgiving in Indian Country

From the earliest days of interaction with the Europeans, Indians have learned to take the best of what Anglo culture had to offer and weave it into one- of-a-kind items. Some might call this acculturation while others might call it adaptation. Nonetheless, today Skoal can lids became the centerpieces of shimmering jingle dress regalia and forty-nine songs are perfect for YouTube. The examples are ingenious and numerous.

Take Thanksgiving, for example. Indians know that the very day of celebration may not have sprouted if the ancestors were not moved to compassion for the visitors who could scarcely stay warm or feed themselves. The exact details may be sketchy but it can be said with some degree of confidence that America would not have a day-long turkey binge if it were not for its introduction by the Indian Samaritans.

So now, on this approaching holiday, Indians will take the questionable day (I used to wear all black for years) and mold it once again into something that suits our purposes. Somewhere in Indian country, the oldest elder in our bunch will say a prayer of Thanksgiving that will be tinged in tears. And we’ll remember all the things we should be grateful for, like Cobell checks. Family feasts will be served with fry bread and turkey. Football might be played, tribal politics dissected and leftovers will go in baggies.