🍂 what's on the table this year?

thanksgiving is one of those days where we can finally pause our busy lives to come together, share some good grub, and reflect on what truly matters. for some, this meant good food and special recipes; for others it meant getting to do certain traditions; and for the rest it meant just spending time with their families. for this post, i decided to shift the spotlight to my readers, people who i’m very thankful for this year! i reached out to readers, subscribers, friends, and family to share some of their favorite thanksgiving traditions, moments, and media favorites. out of the 100+ stories I received, I decided to narrow it down to 5 to keep this post short enough. i hope you enjoy these highlights!

food favorites

for a lot of my readers, the spread at the thanksgiving table has always been the star of the show. here are two of the ways that thanksgiving is cherished through food - 

• “my grandmother and mother always insisted on only bringing pies from home, never the “store-bought mush” they refer to them as. thanksgiving is never the same without their cranberry pie, which makes you forget all about pumpkin pie. this year, i will have my first thanksgiving without either, and look forward to keeping them alive through cranberry pie at the table.” - fauna m.

• “as immigrants, my family always made sure me and my brother were exposed to our indian heritage. so we always do a non-traditional thanksgiving with indian food instead! we make butter chicken instead of a turkey, adding our own family twist to the holiday.” - rani p.

traditions and memories kept alive

some readers shared heartfelt memories and traditions that they make sure to keep going every year on this day. some funny, some memorable, but all having a special place in our hearts - 

• “our first thanksgiving married, my husband and i decided to host thanksgiving at our place with all our friends and families to celebrate. it was a lot of people, the most we have ever hosted together, and there was A LOT of food to make. the keystone to it all, the turkey, my husband was the most confident about, as he was the most proud of his ability “to handle meat” (his words, not mine). we had a trial run for all the food to make sure it was edible, at the very least. the turkey came out great, the cranberry sauce came out of the can ever so nicely, and the mashed potatoes’ instructions were very clear. but on thanksgiving day, the turkey was left in the oven for just a tad too long, tad being an understatement. it was completely forgotten about, really, i am sure it could be confused for charcoal. as an ode to that year, every year we always make sure to burn a single turkey wing. silly, but it is always makes for a great conversation starter at the table!” - mae c.

• “as cliche as it is, my favorite part of thanksgiving is watching the macy’s parade with my family. we always love predicting who we think is coming up next, and are always surprised by who does show up.” - bella s.

• “when i was a kid, we always watched a charlie brown thanksgiving together. it was something we sort of forgot about throughout the year, but were so excited about it when thanksgiving rolled around. i hoped to keep this tradition alive through my own family one day. when i met my fiance, he coincidentally also watched this masterpiece with his brothers every year.” - june k.

closing it off

reading all about the different ways that everyone celebrated the holiday reminded me why the holidays are so special: they have a way of bringing people together. as we all celebrate this year, please remember all the moments that matter the most - the special times with our loved ones, some great food, and loving traditions. 

thank you to everyone who shared their favorites with me and letting me share them with all of you, i’m very grateful! i apologize to all the stories i had to leave out, they all were incredible to read. 

happy thanksgiving to you and your loved ones <3

~ ☀️