Goodbye, Columbus....

 Happy Indigenous Peoples Day!

Photo by Artem Beliaikin from Pexels

No, I won't say 'Happy Columbus Day' anymore. Here's why:

Columbus didn't 'discover' America, he stumbled across it. If you go to a strange town and walk into someone's back yard, did you discover it, or merely come across it? So no kudos to a man who stepped onto a foreign shore and claimed it when he had no right.

Columbus' visit has brought about the death of millions, from the Native Americans living here then, and through our country's history. Nothing to celebrate.

While the same accusation could be tagged to Spain, France, Britain, the Netherlands, and Portugal (among other nations) colonizing what is now known as the American Southwest and California, and holds true for Central and South America, Canada, Africa, and various islands, no invasion should be celebrated. 

While the Native Peoples frequently had their own wars, mass killings, and slavery, that's no reason to celebrate the European version. 

It may be unpopular, but I have no problem with taking down statues of Columbus or Confederate generals. And since no human is perfect, and all have a darker side, how about no statues to any individual? That would be the most equitable solution, in my humble opinion. Put the statues in a museum, although how many statues of Columbus, Robert L. Lee, etc. do we need? 

And that's my thought on this day....

Char

Say it Again and Again...

The time is ripe for more cliches. Thanks again to James Rogers, author of The Dictionary of Cliches (Ballantine Books). The research for this book is exhaustive. Rogers lays out the meaning, etymology, and then where it was first used (it's usually in a piece of literature).

Photo courtesy of Pexels

"Grasp at straws. Act in desperation (probably from the image of a drowning person clutching at anything that floats, even something so insubstantial as straws). [also catch at straws]. Rogers traces it back to 1748 in the novel Clarissa: "A drowning man will catch at a straw...."

Bury the hatchet. Rogers claims there is a dispute between a 14th century English usage of 'hang up the hatchet' which means to stop fighting, but 'bury' the hatchet appears to derive from Native Americans whose ceremony of burying two hatchets was a more binding peace agreement than any papers presented by the government.

Bag of bones. This saying seems to come from Charles Dickens's Oliver Twist as poor Oliver, practically starved, is told, "There, get down stairs, little bag o' bones."

A-OK. Americans can claim the creation of this phrase, which was first used by NASA spokesman James A. Powers in 1961 during the great space race. It meant the mission was going well and became a popular saying.

A no-win situation. In 1962, against the backdrop of the Cold War, this American saying is attributed to "war game activity... "there are plenty of 'no-win situations'" in war games and in real wars."

There are so many wonderful cliches! I encourage you to check out this book. (You might want to review your manuscript to see if you've used a few...)

Till next week!

Char

In Support of Thanksgiving...

It's the new thing- bash everything, everyone. Every holiday. Every person's opinion. Even the facts. Sometimes I feel that people are so miserable and scared (maybe selfish) that they won't be happy unless they make others unhappy. Take the whipping of Thanksgiving.

Okay, we know the Thanksgiving story we've been told is the Hollywood/Disney version: forget or hide the bad stuff, show only the shiny parts. We all know the Native Americans were treated atrociously, that they suffered at the hands of the European settlers (so remember that, Europeans, when you bash us- you had a hand in the atrocities). But it's not all death and horror like some would have you believe.

Here's the true history of Thanksgiving ( http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving ) So put aside your preconceived, misguided or political notions for the truth. I'm going boil it down to generalities:

In his journal, Edward Winslow wrote in the fall of 1621 that: "...many Indians coming amongst us...their King Massasoit with 90 men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted." Besides the feasting, there were games of skill between the men. The Native Americans returned the favor, bringing five deer for the feast.

The custom of celebrating the harvest, which was popular across cultures and nations in Europe for centuries, was neglected for many years--the horrific intervening wars with the Indians taking its toll on that population.

In 1777, the Continental Congress declared a National Day of Thanksgiving to celebrate the colonial victories at Saratoga, and although it did not become a law, various states and towns celebrated a harvest festival. In 1789, President George Washington also called for a national day of Thanksgiving, but it was not a federal holiday.

In the mid 19th century, Sara Josepha Hale, a magazine editor (and author of Mary Had a Little Lamb) started a 30 year letter writing campaign to have a national day of Thanksgiving recognized when the United States balanced on the edge of civil war. In her magazine, she published recipes for pumpkin pie, turkey, and stuffing.

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln decreed, after the Battle of Gettysburg, that the fourth Thursday in November would henceforth be a national and federal holiday to give thanks.

The parade and football traditions arrived in 1924.

It's not all massacres and death (although tragically, that happened in the years following the first feast and continued for so long).

Maybe instead of trashing the holiday completely, how about we focus on the friendship, generosity, goodwill, cooperation, and thankfulness that was present in 1621. Let's be grateful for bounty- and share it more generously than we have with those who want. Let's be grateful for our freedoms and strive to give others the same, and thank those who help us keep it. Let's be grateful for the time we're given and spend it more wisely, more compassionately, more in forgiving. Let's be grateful for family, friends and loved ones. Let's all sit down at the table of humanity and earn the title of  'human.'

Being thankful will make us all happy.

Wishing you a bountiful, happy, sharing, Thanksgiving.

Char