I am someone who loves holidays. I love any excuse to get together with friends and celebrate. I live my life in anticipation of whatever holiday is coming next. That being said, Thanksgiving has never been my favorite. I’m not the biggest turkey fan, it is always so much work for such brief enjoyment, and it always felt like an obstacle I had to get past before I could start getting ready for Christmas. All this coupled with Thanksgiving’s problematic history always left me in less than celebratory spirits.
However, this year I feel differently. Maybe it’s because I already decorated for Christmas, and maybe it’s because I just really need a reason to celebrate right now, but I find myself getting excited for the upcoming holiday. For the first time this year, I’m hosting a Friendsgiving celebration, and I believe it may be my solution to my Thanksgiving blues.
For one, it’s a potluck. No one person is responsible for preparing a feast. Everybody contributes something small, and what might take days of prep is reduced to at most a couple hours. Additionally, everybody gets to bring their favorite dish. You get to try new things that you might not normally have during Thanksgiving.
Perhaps what I’m most excited for however, is the people who put the “friends” in Friendsgiving. Don’t get me wrong, I love my family, and I love to spend time with them, but an evening with friends is just a different vibe entirely. I love my friends. They are the family I have chosen, and nothing sounds more lovely than spending an evening surrounded by all my favorite people, good food, and good music (that I get to choose) in the home that I have created.
While yes, Thanksgiving has a dark and problematic history that is not to be ignored, there is value in the concept of coming together, sharing what we have, and expressing gratitude for the people who make our lives on this earth worth living. This year I’m thankful for a home to host in, a kitchen to cook in, and friends to share it all with. Happy Thanksgiving (and an early Merry Christmas)!!