So Thanksgiving is my least favorite holiday, traditionally. I hearken back to the year I spent inside my room throwing a temper tantrum while the rest of my family wore makeshift pilgrim hats and looked like they had a lot of fun, from the pictures. That Thanksgiving and a couple of other get-togethers like it contributed to my years-long reputation as Family Holiday Ruiner, which took me a long time to shake. As it is I live in Arizona, hundred of miles away from my nearest relatives, and thousands of miles from the ones with whom I have regularly spent holidays.
There is something about the coming together of family that makes my stomach start to churn, even if it’s not my own. When I worked for a resort I always volunteered to work on Thanksgiving since other people seem to like it so much. I have worked on getting to a different place with it, because what more beautiful sentiment to have on a holiday than gratitude for all the abundance around you and sharing that with others?
This year I unexpectedly ended up hosting Thanksgiving at my house, with my friends. I have actually always wanted to have a Friends Thanksgiving. Whether I want to or not, I find the addition of family members pushes me to second-guess myself and end up exhausted from trying to be… perfect? Different? Inoffensive? Something like that. This year I just relaxed into it. I did the majority of my cooking the night before, slept in Thanksgiving morning, took a Power Yoga class at Session Yoga, (which made me feel not guilty ahead of time for any second helpings I might have as well as chill from the yoga) and then got home to finish cooking in a leisurely fashion before the people I love to be with came over.
I put Charlie Brown on hulu, sat back and let my friends take over the kitchen for a while, then amazingly we all fit at my little dining room table. We each said what we were thankful for, we took our time enjoying our food, even got a little bit of a food high and got fits of the giggles. It was … perfect.
I am thankful that I keep trying on this holiday. I am thankful that I have wonderful friends who were willing to make it happen. I am thankful to be coming up on a new year full of possibility. I am thankful that I feel thankful.
Happy Post-Thanksgiving!
Love to you and yours.
