The wild turkey's iridescent plumage, seen here at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas, isn't just striking—it carries the shimmer of history. Today is Thanksgiving, when many Americans gather around the table, enjoying roast turkey stuffed with savory bread dressing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. Football games hum in the background, parades march down city streets, and kitchens buzz with the familiar aromas of holiday cooking.

Accounts trace Thanksgiving back to 1621, when the Wampanoag people, the Indigenous stewards of the region, shared a meal with English settlers in Plymouth, Massachusetts and helped them survive their first harsh year. Yet the practice of giving thanks through feasting stretches much further back. Across North America, Indigenous communities held seasonal gatherings to honor the land, harvest, and social bonds—often including wild turkeys on the menu, long before the Pilgrims arrived.

Thanksgiving became a national holiday in 1863, proclaimed by President Lincoln amid the Civil War as a call for unity. Today, let's savor each bite, recognize the hands and labor that brought it to our plates, and embrace the rich histories intertwined in this tradition.