A Thanksgiving Reflection Rooted in Truth, Aloha, and Ancestral Strength

As Thanksgiving arrives each year, many of us gather around tables filled with food, stories, and familiar faces. We pause to count our blessings and express gratitude for the people and moments that shape our lives. Yet beneath the warmth of the holiday lies a complex history—one that calls for honesty, humility, and a willingness to see the full truth of the past.

A recent proclamation from the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi invites us to reflect more deeply on this day—not as a celebration of the Pilgrims, but as an acknowledgment of the First Nations peoples whose generosity was met, too often, with betrayal rather than reciprocity. Their strength and resilience form the foundation of the real story that Thanksgiving should honor.

Honoring Truth Over Myth

The traditional Thanksgiving narrative paints a picture of harmony and mutual respect, but history reveals a far different reality. The Pilgrims were not stewards of benevolence; their arrival brought violence, dispossession, and immense suffering to Indigenous communities across the continent.

Yet those communities—people of profound spirituality, stewardship, and aloha—extended open hands to strangers. Their goodness remains a testament to their courage and integrity.

This season offers a chance to re-center the story not on myth, but on truth. Not on the Pilgrims, but on the Native peoples whose love of land, family, and Creator set a powerful example for us all.

A Call to Live With Dignity and Justice

The proclamation highlights the wisdom of Shawnee leader Chief Tecumseh, whose words resonate now more than ever:

“Show respect to all people but grovel to none.”

This simple, striking counsel challenges us to live in dignity, humility, and courage—to treat others with honor while standing firm in truth. It reminds us that gratitude should not be passive. It should inspire integrity, justice, and the desire to walk uprightly before God and one another.

The True Blessings of Thanksgiving

The heart of this message is beautifully grounded in the everyday moments that make Thanksgiving meaningful: the sound of keiki playing, kupuna sharing wisdom, families gathered in laughter, and stories weaving generations together. These are the real gifts of the day—not the feast, but the connection.

These memories remind us that abundance is found in relationship:

• The embrace of loved ones
• The joy of a shared table
• The unity that binds us as a people
• The legacy of ancestors who walked before us with purpose and faith

When we center these values—aloha, humility, gratitude, and justice—we strengthen not only our families but the entire Kingdom.

A Thanksgiving Blessing for All

The proclamation concludes with a moving He Pule Hoʻomaikaʻi—a Thanksgiving blessing—inviting us to give thanks to the Creator, cherish unity, and carry forward the spirit of our kūpuna with integrity. It is a reminder that gratitude is a spiritual practice, one that ties us to the land, to each other, and to God.

Moving Forward With Aloha

This Thanksgiving, may we honor truth over myth. May we recognize the strength of First Nations peoples, acknowledge the pain woven into history, and let our gratitude be a catalyst for justice, love, and righteous living.

And may we always remember:

E ola mau ka ʻāina.

E ola mau nā kānaka.

E ola mau ka pono a me ke aloha.

May the land live, may the people live, may righteousness and aloha endure.

Hauʻoli Hoʻomaikaʻi — wishing you a Thanksgiving filled with truth, love, and the warmth of aloha.