This year we will have a few guests for Thanksgiving who are exchange students. They live in Copenhagen or nearby to there. For the Fall Semester they are attending the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Since we live within a relatively short train ride to New York City the added attraction for them visiting us during Thanksgiving is to tour and visit NYC – the sites and sounds.
The fact that our guests this year have never experienced Thanksgiving has us thinking more about the Thanksgiving Holiday itself and what it means to us as a family. We already feel this is our favorite Holiday of them all.
Probably the best way to move through and explain our view on Thanksgiving is to use the:
F – WORDs
FAMILY
FOOD
FOOTBALL
AND FUN!
FAMILY
A friend of ours, Gary, told us about an idea he had started to implement. He and his wife started their family a few years before us. His idea was to have a shirt with each child’s name on the shirt. Each year on their birthday to take a photo of the child laying on the shirt. Then as they grow older and larger in size they begin to actually fit into and wear the shirt for the photo. We started our tradition with red football jerseys. We take a new photo each year on Thanksgiving.
FOOD
The one time each year my wife actually cooks a meal has been Thanksgiving. Now that our four kids are older and know everything this does not work any longer. Plus the introduction of the book, “It Starts With Food” has changed our eating patterns for good.
In addition, two of our four children are big fans and followers of the Whole 30 model of eating as well. What this all means is, well it is all how you look at life… Either it is much more complicated now to purchase and prepare our Thanksgiving Meal or it is much more fun and enjoyable to know we are eating healthier food and preparing many of our dishes from organic and locally sourced providers of natural food.
Photo Credit flickr.com @arfsb
https://www.flickr.com/photos/arfsb/
FOOTBALL
The games will be on TV throughout the day. How much of the games we watch, who knows. It is something we enjoy and if it is true about the amount of total minutes are actual action during a football game then we probably see half of those action packed minutes live and the rest either by replay or ESPN later on that night or the next morning.
FUN
We all have fun!
Thanksgiving is about all of these F-WORDs and most of all giving THANKS.
Being thankful for what we have:
- Our Health
- Our Freedom
- Our Lives
Many of us volunteer our time or donate to charity or both for those in need. All of this should be top of mind throughout the year. Not only on Thanksgiving. Since it is Thanksgiving, we must make it top of mind today.
How do you feel about Thanksgiving?
Mitch Tublin is an advanced certified executive and personal coach who resides in Stamford, CT.
Mitch, I love your four F words! This pretty much sums up our household:-) One thing we started doing a few years ago is setting up a gratitude jar and everyone writes down one thing they are thankful for each day starting Thanksgiving day through New Year’s Eve and then we meet as a family and go around the table to read them all. It’s great bonding and helps keep the focus of the season on gratitude.
We usually invite others who, like us, no longer have family around. This year we will have a couple we’ve known for a few years, a woman who recently lost her spouse to illness, and a couple we don’t know well who have no place to go. Everyone brings one of their own favorite Thanksgiving recipes and we provide turkey, dressing, and dessert.
Love all these f-words (except the football one – just not a fan – sorry!) – we’re from South Africa and are the ones typically invited to Thanksgiving meals by our US friends. I love the family connection, gratitude and giving back aspect. And really love to hear the word organic when someone writes about a Thanksgiving meal – yay!
Have a a great one!
Mitch, I love Thanksgiving! It is definitely one of my favorite holidays as well. Your idea with the football jerseys is fantastic and it’s great to see your family. I’m delighted that my family forgoes any semblance of special diets on this one day of feasting! May you and your family and your visitors from Denmark have a blessed day full of gratitude.
We love Thanksgiving. And in our family it really is about food, fun, and “flocking” together 🙂 We go out of our way to avoid the overcommercialization that manufacturers are trying to create and instead focus on each other and our gratitudes. Wishing you and your family and happy, healthy, and joyous Thanksgiving gathering.
Dad, great article!!
Giving lots of thanks for family, food and fun. I’ll leave the football to you.
Write on!~
Lisa