I would call myself an empath, selfishly. I think a part of my generation needs to self-diagnose everything that has attested to that. Of course, I am joking, but I know more than a few people can relate to feeling overly emotional about things that wouldn’t really make sense to anyone else. For example, feeling bad for an inanimate object and making up an entirely fictional storyline just to make yourself cry for no reason. That’s how I feel about Thanksgiving.
If Thanksgiving had a slogan, it would be “always the bridesmaid, never the bride.”
As you get older, the anticipation of the holiday gets less and less exciting. What once filled our adolescent memories with glitter and gold became excuses for vacations. As adults, you don’t really have the spare time to slow down and value presence. So, I can understand that yearning we all feel to reach that time of the year that makes us feel so nostalgic. I think in an effort to speed through the year, we do ourselves a disservice and end up causing ourselves a lot of unnecessary depression around this supposed “most wonderful time.”
Thanksgiving is the perfect example to describe how I’m feeling. The blatant disrespect the holiday gets is ironic, considering the day is dedicated to gratitude and good eats. I’ve always been a pretty avid Thanksgiving stan, even before I thought it had a deeper meaning beyond seeing close family, awkward small talk or battlegrounds for political discussions with estranged relatives. Like a neglected stepchild, the holiday comes and goes, but I’ll always appreciate her more than she knows.
Christmas may be about giving back and Yuletide gay. But be honest with yourself; you’re only rushing through Thanksgiving to get those UGGS you’ve been wanting.
I feel like it is only ethical to acknowledge Thanksgiving’s origins. For the cultures who do not celebrate the holiday, I respect that entirely. Otherwise, I think most people are a little blind and frankly spoiled by their privilege. To be able to have a day every year, sometimes a week, to be around family and hopefully have some of your favorite foods is a blessing. I didn’t want to bring up religion, but regardless of what you believe in, one thing is for certain: everyone needs human connection.
An act as vulnerable as sharing a meal with someone is strangely connecting. I don’t think it is a coincidence when you go on a date, the first act is usually getting a meal together. Specifically, I like to see older people indulge and think of them as little kids. That joyous sensation they feel when they get to be bad and eat sweet potato crunch.
Not to mention, some of the best holiday-themed episodes revolve around Thanksgiving. That statement might be a little biased. But People magazine even took it upon themselves to rank all ten of the very hilarious Friends(giving) episodes. Honestly, dare I crown Thanksgiving as the coziest holiday?
Blair Bernard is a 21-year-old theater performance major from Lafayette, La.
