by Aidan Millar-White
Happy Holidays! Thanksgiving is right around the corner and it’s time to start looking for recipes and new traditions to fill your holiday season! But first, let's take a look at what Thanksgiving means to the students at Minarets.
To many, Thanksgiving is a time to spend with family, to gather around the table, and enjoy a big meal together.
Senior Lily Chance states, “To me, Thanksgiving is a sense of relief that I will be reunited with my family again. With people that I only see during the holidays, I look forward to every event. Thanksgiving to me is when we all pray and get brought together for one day. We have games and we laugh, this day is a day that I don't take for granted. I know one Thanksgiving Day it will be my last. So Thanksgiving means a lot to me.”
Sophomore Jayla Johnson said, “Thanksgiving to me, means spending time with the people you love and are appreciative of for everything they have done for you. Thanksgiving is a time to reflect [on] who you are thankful for and what you are thankful for.”
Finally, junior Kendra Battcher noted, “To me, Thanksgiving is about putting aside all of your worries, and just being thankful for those around you. It's not about complaining or wishing you had more than you do, it’s about being grateful for what you do have, and more importantly, WHO you have. There are some people in my life that I am so thankful to have. People who understand me and care for me more than anyone else possibly could.”
Arguably one of the most important parts of Thanksgiving is, as junior Philip Struffert put it, “Food, lots of delicious food.”
It’s what everyone gathers for - the great feast. Some classic and delicious Thanksgiving foods (along with their recipes) include the traditional turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, stuffing, candied yams, fluffy potato rolls, apple pie, and of course, a crowd favorite, pumpkin pie, as well as so much more.
Battcher added, “So for our meal, my mom always makes egg bake and caramel rolls for breakfast. They are only for special occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas. They are the best things ever! And for our lunch/dinner, we make a turkey, with some cheesy potatoes, macaroni salad, green beans, Hawaiian rolls, fruit salad, cookie salad, and of course, pie to finish it off.”
“Thanksgiving is a time for the whole family to get together and for the kids to play and for the adults to catch up and of course the food, the food is where it’s at,” stated sophomore Landon Donahue.
Thanksgiving is one of the biggest and best excuses to plan a family get-together. Once everyone’s all together and greeted after a long time, what does the family do now? Well, here are some awesome family traditions to get your Thanksgiving full of family fun underway! This can also apply to Friendsgiving activities if a Friendsgiving is in your future.
“Well in my family, we usually just celebrate by getting a pumpkin, and in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, we write down one thing each day that we are thankful for. Then, on Thanksgiving, we just make up a nice tasty meal and spend quality time with each other while giving thanks to our God. Thanksgiving for us looks a little different because we don't get together with all of our extended family because they all live in Minnesota, but this is our way of doing things,” Battcher said.
A classic and fun bonding activity is to get the cousins together to play football outside while the aunts and uncles watch a game from inside until it’s time to eat. One could also watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade on TV. Once everyone’s done eating, broken the wishbone, and had their siesta, then everyone in the family can go around and say or write down what they’re thankful for. Then if your family feels like it, take a post-Thanksgiving walk around the neighborhood. Maybe wave to a neighbor if you see one. When the walk is over, have a family game night! You can even ask your family to bring their favorite games to play. You can also start new family traditions this year.
On Thanksgiving at the Millar side of my family’s household, we wear awesome onesies to celebrate. Mine’s a dragon and I love it. The holiday is what you make it! Finally, once you’ve finished cleaning up the Thanksgiving meal, go ahead and deck the halls with all the holiday decorations. You’ve earned it.
Happy Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving! 'Tis the season!
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