Being Thankful

As usual my schedule at this time of year is completely overwhelming as the end of the semester clashes with the beginnings of the holiday season. But in my car, stuck in traffic, I have time to think and observe and dwell. Understandably this time of year often turns one's mind to what it is they are thankful for. 

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This morning I found myself contemplating things I am thankful for that I had not control over. I was born who I was when I was and that has afforded me privilege that others have not had the opportunity to access. The commute this morning was particularly long and I found it humbling to acknowledge the advantages I have been afforded, through no effort on my part, while listening to stories about racism, and war, and terrorism, and refugees as the backdrop of my commute on the radio.

I like to think that I treat everyone fairly. I like to think that I take everyone's potential and treat it as equal. The reality is I do not always reach the heights of enlightenment that I aspire to. I am hopeful that experiences like this morning will enable me to more supportive and empathetic and understanding in my practice and interactions with others who have had to travel a more challenging path simply because of when and where and to whom they were born. 

So below is my list of things I am thankful for, not because they made me a better person, but because they offered me a path to the life I live and love ..... a path everyone should have equal access to.

I am thankful I was born in the United States,

I am thankful I was born white,

I am thankful I was born a woman, after the sexual revolution,

I am thankful I was born to middle class parents,

I am thankful I have never had to wonder where my next meal would come from,

I am thankful I have never had to worry about where I would lay my head at night,

I am thankful I have never had to worry about accessing health care,

I am thankful I have never had to worry about my education,

I am thankful I have never had to worry drone strikes or air raids,

I am thankful I have never had to defend my sexual orientation,

I am thankful I have never had to defend my religious beliefs,

I am thankful I have lived in peace. 

Happy Thanksgiving to all .......

The Thanksgivings

Translated from a traditional Iroquois prayer

We who are here present thank the Great Spirit that we are here
          to praise Him.
We thank Him that He has created men and women, and ordered
          that these beings shall always be living to multiply the earth.
We thank Him for making the earth and giving these beings its products
          to live on.
We thank Him for the water that comes out of the earth and runs
          for our lands.
We thank Him for all the animals on the earth.
We thank Him for certain timbers that grow and have fluids coming
          from them for us all.
We thank Him for the branches of the trees that grow shadows
          for our shelter.
We thank Him for the beings that come from the west, the thunder
          and lightning that water the earth.
We thank Him for the light which we call our oldest brother, the sun
          that works for our good.
We thank Him for all the fruits that grow on the trees and vines.
We thank Him for his goodness in making the forests, and thank
          all its trees.
We thank Him for the darkness that gives us rest, and for the kind Being
          of the darkness that gives us light, the moon.
We thank Him for the bright spots in the skies that give us signs,
          the stars.
We give Him thanks for our supporters, who had charge of our harvests.
We give thanks that the voice of the Great Spirit can still be heard
          through the words of Ga-ne-o-di-o.
We thank the Great Spirit that we have the privilege of this pleasant
          occasion.
We give thanks for the persons who can sing the Great Spirit’s music,
          and hope they will be privileged to continue in his faith.
We thank the Great Spirit for all the persons who perform the ceremonies
          on this occasion.

Thanksgiving Traditions

My last post was about my anger over losing Thanksgiving to capitalism (I am still angry about that - if you agree here is a petition you can sign). This blog is about family traditions - some which are old and some which I would like to start.
 
I recently broke down and created a Pinterest account. There are so many cool things posted there about the holidays, but I have to admit, most of them are so beyond my energy level or capability. They just seem to create more pressure on people during an already stressful time of the year.
 
Holiday traditions should be fun. They should be memorable. They should be things that we look forward to every year. In my house those things mostly revolve around food! But I would like to start some new fun things that we can create or do every year!
 
Let us start with the Thanksgiving meal. In my house there are some things that you have to have:

Turkey
Mashed Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes
Boiled Onions
Turnips (for my dad - no one else seems to eat them)
Butternut Squash
Crescent Rolls
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Feta Cheese
Kalamata Olives
Baby Gherkins
Galaktoboureko
 
I have the BEST turkey recipe! Recently however I found a post somewhere that said if you cook your turkey breast side down - instead of breast side up - your turkey will be moister. I think I am trying it this year. The rest of the recipe is below:
 
I start my turkey the night before with a brine recipe I found. I know it looks weird but it works! The only change I made is that I use fresh thyme instead of dry. The next day I dry the turkey, and then cover it in olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Inside the turkey I put lemons, onion halves and some more thyme. Then I put some slices of butter under the turkey skin. I put the turkey in an electric roaster at 325 degrees and roast based on the chart below.

Whole Turkey (pounds)	Unstuffed (hours)	Stuffed (hours)
8-12	2.75-3	3.0 – 3.5
12-14	3.0 – 3.75	3.5 - 4.0
14-18	3.75 – 4.25	4.0 – 4.25
18-20	4.25 – 4.5	4.25 – 4.75
20-24	4.5 – 5.0	4.75 – 5.25

 

That is it! I don't baste, I don't touch it until it has been cooking for awhile - and then I am only testing for doneness. I use a thermometer and turn the roaster off at 165 degrees and let it "rest" in the roasted while I put out the other things.

 

This year I am adding corn pudding and roasted parsnips to the menu - we will see how those go. They are new recipes and if they don't turn out it is ok because there will be plenty of other things.

 

I listened to a news program today about planning your dinner so it is less stressful. They talked about writing out a plan and using post-it notes and all these other things. Listening to it made me stressed!

 

I have a simple plan - make desserts the day before. Prep as many of the vegetables as I can the night before. And then begin cooking with the things that take the longest to cook. I like to keep things as simple as I can (we recently had a Halloween party where I forgot my basic plan and I was still cooking when people got to the house - I hate that)!

 

This year I would like to have a things that I am thankful for activity. Maybe have everyone write one thing they are thankful for on a canvas. Then next year I can put it out again and we can add to it every year.

 

Basically I just like having people at the house! I like sharing the holidays with people that are important to me and I like feeding them! I worked a lot of years to be able to have a house for people to come to (and if I do say so myself - my husband and I have some pretty awesome parties). This is what I am thankful for.

 

I would love it if people who read this blog share what their Thanksgiving traditions are. New ideas are always fun to share and perhaps a new tradition for my family will come of it.

 

 

 

 

What happened to Thanksgiving?

Hallowgivingmas is an actual word in the Urban Dictionary. It is the reality that in October you can purchase your Halloween costume, your napkins for Thanksgiving and your Christmas lights all at the same time in the same store. It is ridiculous and sad!

 

My husband and I used to LOVE Black Friday. The kids would stay at my mom's house, we would get up at 4:00 am and be at the store for the 5:00 am opening. The stores would have coffee & donuts for the "crazy" people waiting in line and we would meet some very interesting people while we waited. The reality is we never really bought much. We just really thought it was novel and fun to get up early and go shopping. Every once and awhile we would find a good deal (I purchased my first digital camera on Black Friday) - but in general it was just fun (we are both avid people watchers).

 

And then one year there were police cruisers in the parking lot (just in case). The coffee & donuts were gone. The people in line were now corralled around the store. The conversation was no longer friendly. Then there were the people who were trampled to death and pepper sprayed and the fighting (there is actually a webpage that ranks the most brutal Black Friday incidents)!  And the sales - well it was just junk they had not been able to sell the rest of the year. Then stores started opening at 4:00 am, then 2:00 am, then midnight. And this year they have all but eviscerated Thanksgiving: stores are opening at 8:00 pm on Thanksgiving beginning the new tradition of "Black Thursday!"

 

So what is the tradition of Thanksgiving anyway? Why do we celebrate this holiday in the first place?

 

I try not to think of the story of Thanksgiving as beginning with the Pilgrims and Native Americans. Because let's be honest, the Native Americans shared their farming techniques and their food, the Pilgrims shared Small Pox and thievery. But that is a story for another blog. For the purposes of this blog we will just talk about the American tradition of Thanksgiving.

 

Thanksgiving began as a religious holiday to thank God for a good harvest and and in 1789 George Washington issued the first Thanksgiving proclamation by the national government of the United States; in it, he called upon Americans to express their gratitude for the happy conclusion to the country’s war of independence and the successful ratification of the U.S. Constitution.  But states all celebrated on their own day and in their own way. Then in 1863, President Lincoln needed something to bring the nation together during the Civil War so he declared one national day of Thanksgiving - which would occur on last Thursday of November.

 

So, for 78 years people used the Thanksgiving holiday to be thankful - for a good harvest, for times of peace, for family, for friends. It was a holiday where no gifts were required. People shared food and good conversation. The change began in 1924 with the Macy's Christmas parade - which began as a way for employees to celebrate the upcoming Christmas season. And it changed completely in 1941 when Franklin Roosevelt changed the holiday to the fourth Thursday of November so that the Christmas shopping season could be a little longer. It was all downhill from there!

 

Go to a store today looking for Thanksgiving napkins and you are not likely to find them - they have been on clearance shelves for weeks at this point. Ask people what their plans are for Thanksgiving and it will likely have a reference to an early dinner before the shopping spree begins. What happened to being thankful for what we already have?

 

This of course is a blog about the bigger picture since we as a people seem incapable of being thankful for what we have. As technology moves faster and faster - as there is always a new generation of phone or tablet or video game, there is always something to stand in line for because the product we purchased 6 months ago is not good enough now.

 

But look closer and you will find pockets of thankfulness. People who are just happy to sit around a table with people they don't get to see as much as they would like. People who are thankful to have food to eat. People who are grateful to have one day a year to reflect on the good things that have happened since last Thanksgiving. My home is one of those pockets.

 

I am planning my Thanksgiving this week. The menu, the food shopping list, schedule of cooking. My husband and I may get up early on Friday and go shopping - but I refuse to go shopping on Thursday. I hold sacred the fact that this is the one day a year where we focus on family without distraction.

 

 

So happy Thanksgiving - however you choose to celebrate!