22 November 2025
The Thanksgiving You Never Learned in School - NaPodPoMo 2025 #22 - E23
In this opening episode of the Randy Unscripted Thanksgiving series, Randy Black takes listeners beyond the familiar classroom version of Thanksgiving to uncover the deeper and more complex history behind one of America’s most celebrated holidays. Drawing on his background as a former history teacher, Randy explores the lesser-known stories surrounding early thanksgiving observances, including Indigenous traditions of gratitude, the 1619 Berkeley Hundred thanksgiving in Virginia, Spanish celebrations in St. Augustine, and the cultural forces that eventually elevated the Plymouth narrative into the dominant American story.
More than just a history lesson, this episode reflects on the spiritual foundations of gratitude and how thanksgiving has long been woven into the human experience. Through historical storytelling, biblical reflection, and thoughtful commentary, Randy challenges listeners to see Thanksgiving not simply as a holiday tradition, but as a posture of humility, remembrance, and gratitude toward God. This episode sets the foundation for the entire Thanksgiving series by revealing that the story of Thanksgiving is far bigger — and far richer — than most of us ever learned in school.
More than just a history lesson, this episode reflects on the spiritual foundations of gratitude and how thanksgiving has long been woven into the human experience. Through historical storytelling, biblical reflection, and thoughtful commentary, Randy challenges listeners to see Thanksgiving not simply as a holiday tradition, but as a posture of humility, remembrance, and gratitude toward God. This episode sets the foundation for the entire Thanksgiving series by revealing that the story of Thanksgiving is far bigger — and far richer — than most of us ever learned in school.
