Editor's note: This editorial originally appeared Nov. 27, 2008, in the Hattiesburg American. It has been updated to include President Obama's proclamation.
The first Thanksgiving was a harvest feast that the Pilgrims at Plymouth Plantation, in the colony of Massachusetts, shared with the Wampanoag Indians. Here is how Edward Winslow described that feast in "A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth" in 1621:
"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors;
"At which time, among other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed upon our governor, and upon the captain, and others.
"And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty."
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving in the midst of the Civil War. "The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God."
In President Barack Obama's Thanksgiving Proclamation for this year, he said: "This day is a time to take stock of the fortune we have known and the kindnesses we have shared, grateful for the God-given bounty that enriches our lives. As many pause to lend a hand to those in need, we are also reminded of the indelible spirit of compassion and mutual responsibility that has distinguished our Nation since its earliest days.
" ... Let us spend this day by lifting up those we love, mindful of the grace bestowed upon us by God and by all who have made our lives richer with their presence."