Thanksgiving. We all love it, because it’s truly the one secular holiday unique to North America. This translates into another distinctively North American pastime: over-eating. And not just gorging, but ritualistic gluttony. Tradition is also a loaded term, and every family has their own special way of celebrating.
When talking with people this last week, there was a common theme to most everyone's long-weekend. A giant bird with all the trimmings followed by pumpkin pie. In our house, the cook diligently creates a menu circa-1940. So in addition to the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes (obvious), there is the added delight of boiled turnip, stewed squash, grated paprika cabbage salad with raisins, and the piece de resistance…. jellied carrot salad. Really. There are always significant leftovers. You can probably see why. But, as offensive as I find carrot salad, it’s a labour of love for my 95-year old Grandmother and is her signature contribution to the meal. So looking across the Thanksgiving table, I block out the food and look at the four generations of family who have happily converged to feast and laugh together. Because not every family gathering is joyous, so it’s important to stop, put the fork down and appreciate the great moments.
And hey, not everyone has a tradition. A friend of mine was invited to Thanksgiving dinner last minute at a colleague’s house and she said, “Sure, thanks, what can I bring?” and the host replied, “The turkey!”. And they were not joking. She wins the prize for the most outrageous Thanksgiving. As for the rest of us, see you at the gym – Christmas is around the corner.
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