Thanksgiving Food Inspires Gratitude for American Melting Pot

Those of us who grew up watching the classic Charlie Brown cartoons remember well exactly what went wrong with poor Chuck’s Thanksgiving celebration. To be fair, the fellow was forced to invite a whole crew to dinner, despite his lack of culinary skill and adult supervision. But no excuses! His guests were right to be let down when they discovered that he and Snoopy had crafted a meal of popcorn, pretzels, toast, and jellybeans.

The moral of the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving story is that the holiday is about those with whom you celebrate, not what you eat. But I think most of us would’ve been similarly disappointed to sit down to such fare at the Thanksgiving table. Because as much as Thanksgiving centers first and foremost around the many things for which we’re grateful, this holiday is also focused on food.

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Alexandra DeSanctis

Alexandra DeSanctis is a contributing writer at National Review.

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Those of us who grew up watching the classic Charlie Brown cartoons remember well exactly what went wrong with poor Chuck’s Thanksgiving celebration. To be fair, the fellow was forced to invite a whole crew to dinner, despite his lack of culinary skill and adult supervision. But no excuses! His guests were right to be let down when they discovered that he and Snoopy had crafted a meal of popcorn, pretzels, toast, and jellybeans.

The moral of the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving story is that the holiday is about those with whom you celebrate, not what you eat. But I think most of us would’ve been similarly disappointed to sit down to such fare at the Thanksgiving table. Because as much as Thanksgiving centers first and foremost around the many things for which we’re grateful, this holiday is also focused on food.