1:

The air was cool and moist as Andy followed his friends down the path to the ranch style duplex. He carried his Buzz Lightyear book bag. "Cheer up, Miranda. At least you have lines."

"It's so stupid!" she grumbled. "She only cast me because I have dark skin! If I was white, I'd be a pilgrim like you!"

"Would you rather be the grapes in the cornucopia like me?" asked Maxie.

Andy shifted his bag. "I'm glad we don't have to worry about our toys being taken away on the bus anymore. Not since Ms. Grunch quit."

"What do you think happened to her?" asked Miranda.

"Maybe she moved to Antarctica and gotten eaten by a polar bear." Maxie paused. "No wait, that's what I hope happened to her."

Inside Andy's backpack, Jessie was reading a thin paperback book. "This Thanksgiving Day play is a joke!" she said in dismay.

"Not so loud!" Woody scolded. "Do you want them to hear you?"

Jessie ignored him. "The Pilgrims were lazy, thievin' curs who nearly wiped out the Wampanoag tribe by disease and murder! The Indians weren't even invited to the harvest feast!"

Woody put his hands over his ears. "I can't hear you!"

She pulled his right one down and shouted in his ear, "You've been brainwashed! There were no musical numbers! No singin' squirrels! Hanna-Barbera lied to you people! Thanksgiving is a farce!"

"I don't wanna know about it!"

"Farce, farce, farce!"

Buzz was sitting farther away from them. "C'mon you two. Let's just agree to disagree. Jessie dislikes Thanksgiving because it portrays a false history and stereotype of friendly, hardy pilgrims and happy Native Americans…"

Jessie nodded. "Uh huh."

"And Woody likes Thanksgiving because it's an American tradition and a time for family and friends to come together and be grateful."

"Uh huh," said Woody.

"That," Buzz added. "And he prefers to stick his head in the sand like an ostrich and believe the whitewashed version of Thanksgiving because it's much nicer."

"Buzz!"

"Well it's true."

Outside the backpack, Miranda had unlocked the door to her house and led Andy and Maxie inside. There was a sewing machine pushed against the far wall and sitting on front of it was a small wrinkled woman with black hair so thin one could see the shape of her head. She was making an Indian costume.

"Kumusta ho, Lola," said Miranda as they passed her into the hall. The old woman pulled a pin out of the fabric as she nodded.

"You call your grandma 'Lola?'" asked Maxie.

Miranda rolled her eyes. "'Lola' means Grandmother. She doesn't speak any English." The bedroom was at the end of the hallway and there was a picture of Sarah McLachlan ripped from the cover of Rolling Stone and taped to the door.

Miranda pushed the door open. "Wanna get a snack first before play practice?" she asked as she dumped her bag on the floor.

"Sure." Andy and Maxie dropped theirs. Inside, the toys could feel the impact as they hit the ground.

"We got popcorn, granola, carrot sticks…" they heard Miranda say. "Celery sticks, apples, oranges, orange juice, orange soda…" The door swung shut behind them. "Or we could just have chocolate ice cream."

"Ice cream!" said Andy and Maxie together.