[RCL]

And this arrived in my mail from The Frost Place:

Words That Come Before All Else

Dear Ralph,

Thanksgiving in the United States is always celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. In Canada, Thanksgiving is celebrated the second Monday in October. The most widely-known, early Thanksgiving is that of the Pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts, who feasted for 3 days with the Wampanoag people in 1621. These are the official days of the celebration, held once a year. I knew most of this, and I will bet that you did as well. However, I didn’t know that the Native Americans' expressions of gratitude for the gifts of life inspired the holiday of Thanksgiving in the United States.

Haudenosaunee tradition teaches that peace requires gratitude. Rather than give thanks on a single day, every gathering and ceremony began with a prayer of thanks. It teaches to be thankful for the living world.
Nearly every gathering or event of the Haudenosaunee begins and ends with the “Thanksgiving Address”, or “the words that must come before all others”. The Thanksgiving Address acknowledges the people, earth, waters, plants, animals, birds, bushes, trees, winds, sun, moon, stars, as well as the unseen spiritual forces.

This holiday, which means many different things to many different groups, I invite you to celebrate its power to draw us together, overcoming the difficulties that come with our differences. If you are reading this, it means you are a part of The Frost Place community. Thank you for being a part of this community and making it strong. Thank you for sharing your time and ideas. Whether you read poetry, pulled weeds, hung baffles in the windows, taught a class, walked the trails, or any combination-- thank you.

Words That Come Before All Else:

We return thanks to the earth, which sustains us.
We return thanks to the rivers and streams, which supply us with water.
We return thanks to all herbs, which furnish medicines for the cure of our diseases.
We return thanks to the corn,
and to her sisters, the beans and squash,
which give us life. We return thanks to the bushes and trees,
which provide us with fruit. We return thanks to the wind,
which, moving the air, has banished diseases.
We return thanks to the moon and the stars,
which have given us their light when the sun was gone.
We return thanks to our grandfather who has given to us his rain.
We return thanks to the sun, that he has looked upon the earth
with a beneficent eye. Lastly, we return thanks to the Great Spirit,
in whom is embodied all goodness,
and who directs all things for the good of his children.


Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours,


Maudelle Driskell
Executive Director