What is Thanksgiving to you and why is it important?
To me, thanksgiving means being thankful and appreciating those around you. It is a chance to really reflect on your life and to be together with family and friends.
Thanksgiving has always been an important holiday for me because it is one of the few that all Americans celebrate!
America is a melting pot, with people from all different cultures and walks of life. I grew up with a very diverse group of friends and each celebrated their own holidays, from Christmas to Hanukah to Ramadan. Although I liked learning about these holidays, it was also great to have one day that brought us together. There was no explaining needed, no translating, just spending time together! Our au pairs always loved this as well, because it is something so unique to the USA and none of them had celebrated it before!
I went to public school, where they are always very careful not to celebrate any religious holidays (in the event that some would feel left out), so Thanksgiving was also something that all the students could get involved in. In school we learned the importance of friendship and unity and always made decorations to bring home. From paper turkeys to pilgrim hats, my parents could always count on something to help decorate the house!
How did you celebrate when you were a child?
I was lucky to grow up in Massachusetts, the birth place of Thanksgiving, so there was always an abundance of things to do! We always tried to do all the fun fall things that Massachusetts had to offer, like apple picking and hay rides. In school we would usually take a field trip to Plymoth plantation, a village that was staged to be like a 17th century village. They had actors there that always stayed in character, which we kids thought was hilarious. It’s a great idea actually to bring your host kids to, read more here: http://www.plimoth.org/what-see-do
Its both fun and educational!
When it came to Thanksgiving day, my family usually celebrated with some neighborhood friends. Around 1 pm we would get together for a late lunch/dinner and eat together… for hours!
A big part of thanksgiving is food and there would always be plenty of it. A great big thanksgiving turkey, complete with stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce. Then there were all the sides, from mashed potatoes, to green bean casserole to brussel sprouts and sweet potatoes covered with marshmallows. And then not to mention the dessert! Pumpkin pie has to be one of my all-time favorites, especially combined with vanilla ice-cream!
Once we were all settled around the table with our plates full there is one tradition we would always do before we could dig in. Everyone would go around the table and say what they are most thankful for. I love this tradition because it gives a glimpse into everyone’s lives and their values.
One of my favorite thanksgiving memories is when my father decided to be extremely American and ordered a turduken for our thanksgiving. What is a turduken you ask? Well, it is a de-boned turkey, a fully hand de-boned duck, and a fully hand de-boned chicken, all rolled into one and stuffed with lots of delicious stuffing (three kinds of stuffing are layered between the three kinds of meat). So that means a chicken, inside a duck, inside a turkey, all sown together…. Crazy right? The funniest part was actually when he took it out of the oven and nearly dropped it, because it was so heavy, and ended up spilling a good amount of the drippings onto our carpet. Guess where our dogs parked themselves the rest of the evening?
Do you think Sweden should adopt Thanksgiving?
Taking the time out to be thankful and appreciate your friends and family is important, no matter where you live! A very popular thing that has sprung up recently is something called “Friendsgiving” which is when you have a dinner with your best friends and just appreciate the fact that you are in each others lives. It is also always fun to try cooking some new food dishes, so I recommend everyone to try it out!
