It seems clear nowadays that holidays have evolved to become materialistic and commercial. So much so in fact that we have an entire shopping season dedicated to some of these holidays, and they have become more about the gifts that are given rather than the times that are shared. But there is a holiday we celebrate that hasn’t fallen under the spell of retailers and online shopping sites, and that is Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is a holiday in which your not thankful for the gifts given but rather the whole family coming together, spending time with one another and catching up on life. I can just imagine it now: the whole family gathered around the table, a turkey straight out of the oven right in the center, and my dog lying underneath waiting for any food to fall to the floor. The conversation at the table always begins with what everyone has been doing for the past year. Then it transitions to any future plans anyone may have. And finally, someone introduces a controversial topic and it quickly escalates to a screaming match before someone storms out of the room. Then we move to the living room and eat pumpkin pie as we watch the football game. And as we watch the game some random sports argument gets brought up between the cousins and someone of course storms off. And the next day, everyone wakes up miserable and leaves. And we all let out a sigh of relief. It's a simple formula that we have been following for years.
And now that I think about maybe what we should be truly thankful for on Thanksgiving is that we don’t have to see these people on a daily basis. Maybe instead of spending time with family we should just get people gifts and call it a day.
Thanksgiving is a holiday in which your not thankful for the gifts given but rather the whole family coming together, spending time with one another and catching up on life. I can just imagine it now: the whole family gathered around the table, a turkey straight out of the oven right in the center, and my dog lying underneath waiting for any food to fall to the floor. The conversation at the table always begins with what everyone has been doing for the past year. Then it transitions to any future plans anyone may have. And finally, someone introduces a controversial topic and it quickly escalates to a screaming match before someone storms out of the room. Then we move to the living room and eat pumpkin pie as we watch the football game. And as we watch the game some random sports argument gets brought up between the cousins and someone of course storms off. And the next day, everyone wakes up miserable and leaves. And we all let out a sigh of relief. It's a simple formula that we have been following for years.And now that I think about maybe what we should be truly thankful for on Thanksgiving is that we don’t have to see these people on a daily basis. Maybe instead of spending time with family we should just get people gifts and call it a day.
LOL (I actually laughed out loud, weirdly, alone in my classroom just now). I love the turn this took :)
ReplyDeleteI love this! My friends think it's so weird when I say this, but I actually don't really like Thanksgiving. I'm super introverted, so making small talk with people that I only see a couple of times a year is not my cup of tea. For my Thanksgiving, 22 people go to my aunt's house and it is absolute chaos. I do love getting the time off from school though!That's definitely something I'm thankful for!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with this. Extended family are basically strangers that you're related to, and you're somehow expected to be able to hold a conversation with them. I would much rather eat my turkey alone thank you very much.
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