Today is Thanksgiving. Today I am thankful for my wonderful husband, and for my badly behaved children. Badly behaved as they may be, they're also brilliant and beautiful and very sweet and I love them very much.
Today I am also thankful to be in America. I feel kinda corny writing that, but this forum is for honesty, so there you go. We've spent the last few Thanksgivings in China, and there is something special about gathering together with other Americans to create our own, warm corner of America anywhere in the world. But there's something pretty great about being in America for Thanksgiving - where everyone has the day off, the neighborhood smells like dried leaves and all of the fixings are readily available (and even on sale!).
We took full advantage, and created a feast worthy of many more people
than sat at the table. Especially because by the time our feast reached
the table, the girls had lost most of their appetites. Still, Dave and
I enjoyed it... and will be enjoying the leftovers for another week or
so, at least.
And today, celebrating a small and quiet version of the traditional American Thanksgiving, it makes me aware of how differently my children's lives will be from mine. My childhood memories of Thanksgiving are generally the same. My mom made the meal, which we ate at our home with my grandparents coming over to share. I would be upstairs in my room making some sort of decorations - place cards, pilgrim hats, or teepee centerpieces. My mom made the same stuffing every year, and the same pumpkin pie. The holiday was about three things - eating the same, fabulous, home-cooked menu every year; celebrating our blessings; and being together with family.
What will this look like for my kids? The menu will likely change year to year, partly due to availability of different foods in different places, but partly because we will often join potlucks and share traditions from loads of different families. We can still celebrate our blessings, but what else will my kids associate with Thanksgiving when they're grown?
No doubt things change, and my childhood Thanksgivings looked dramatically different from those of my parents as well. For now, I am happy to relax with a glass of wine, a full belly and a refrigerator loaded with leftovers. I am thankful for all that we have.
Today I am also thankful to be in America. I feel kinda corny writing that, but this forum is for honesty, so there you go. We've spent the last few Thanksgivings in China, and there is something special about gathering together with other Americans to create our own, warm corner of America anywhere in the world. But there's something pretty great about being in America for Thanksgiving - where everyone has the day off, the neighborhood smells like dried leaves and all of the fixings are readily available (and even on sale!).
We took full advantage, and created a feast worthy of many more people
than sat at the table. Especially because by the time our feast reached
the table, the girls had lost most of their appetites. Still, Dave and
I enjoyed it... and will be enjoying the leftovers for another week or
so, at least.
And today, celebrating a small and quiet version of the traditional American Thanksgiving, it makes me aware of how differently my children's lives will be from mine. My childhood memories of Thanksgiving are generally the same. My mom made the meal, which we ate at our home with my grandparents coming over to share. I would be upstairs in my room making some sort of decorations - place cards, pilgrim hats, or teepee centerpieces. My mom made the same stuffing every year, and the same pumpkin pie. The holiday was about three things - eating the same, fabulous, home-cooked menu every year; celebrating our blessings; and being together with family.
What will this look like for my kids? The menu will likely change year to year, partly due to availability of different foods in different places, but partly because we will often join potlucks and share traditions from loads of different families. We can still celebrate our blessings, but what else will my kids associate with Thanksgiving when they're grown?
No doubt things change, and my childhood Thanksgivings looked dramatically different from those of my parents as well. For now, I am happy to relax with a glass of wine, a full belly and a refrigerator loaded with leftovers. I am thankful for all that we have.
1 comment:
Hello there. You don't know me but I have just received your Christmas cards (well, kind of) in the mail. Apparently we both used simplytoimpress (not very impressed right now!) and it seems they have made a huge mess-up of the order. Sooooo, if you get cards with someone else's kids on, chances are they are mine!
Sarah in Colorado
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