Hold on before you eat that 🦃👇
🕯️ This Thanksgiving, I honor my Taíno ancestors of Borikén and the Indigenous peoples of the land I now live on, the Calusa.
Gratitude did not begin with Pilgrims. Long before colonization, Indigenous peoples across these lands practiced reverence for the Earth, ancestors, seasons, and spirit.
For many Native peoples, Thanksgiving is not a celebration; it is a day of remembrance, truth, and survival.
As someone who is part Puerto Rican, I carry Taíno blood, resilience, and memory in my body. And as someone who lives in Key West, I offer respect to the Calusa, the first stewards of these waters, shorelines, and islands.
Today, I give thanks with honesty:
🙏for the land beneath my feet
🙏for the ancestors who survived
🙏for the responsibility to remember, learn, and honor truth
🕯️ A Simple Ancestral Gratitude Ritual
If you’re called to do so today:
🕯️Light a candle or sit quietly for a moment.
❤️Place one hand on the Earth and your heart.
📣Speak aloud:
“I honor the ancestors who came before me. I acknowledge the Indigenous peoples of this land. May gratitude carry truth.
May remembrance be an act of respect.”
🧘Sit in stillness for a few breaths before returning to your day.
May gratitude be rooted in respect, and may remembrance be an act of love.
I am grateful for all of you!
Jen🌙
xoxo