By Katy Preston

Each year, on the fourth Thursday of November, families and friends throughout the United States gather for a sumptuous meal. Traditionally, the main feature of the Thanksgiving table is a turkey, accompanied by cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, and pumpkin pie for dessert.

American children learn that the first Thanksgiving occurred when the Pilgrims and the Native Americans—most prominently, the English-speaking Squanto—sat down for a peaceful celebration of the fall harvest in the early 17th century. This celebratory feast did occur in 1621; however, the history of the holiday is a bit more complicated, since many Thanksgiving celebrations in later years were actually church celebrations and fast days rather than feasts.

As a matter of fact, it was Abraham Lincoln who proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving Day in 1863, in the middle of the American Civil War. President Lincoln asked the American people to remember the country’s blessings as well as its losses, and to hope for the healing of the nation’s wounds in the future. Later presidents upheld the holiday, and it was finally set as the fourth Thursday in November in 1942.

More importantly, Thanksgiving is a time for us to pause for a day and remember what we are thankful for. Together with our families and friends, we think about the things that make our lives worth living and that carry us from one day to the next.

We at Zhang & Associates are thankful for our wonderful clients. We feel honored to work with our clients on their dreams of living and working in the United States. We would like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your business, and for trusting us with your future.

We at Zhang & Associates realize that not all of our clients participate in the specific traditions of Thanksgiving in the United States. However, the principles of this holiday are inclusive and universal. So no matter where you come from or what’s on your dinner table this Thursday, Zhang & Associates wishes you a happy Thanksgiving and a wonderful holiday season.