I realize that it is not even October yet, but the colorful leaves on the trees and the abundance of pumpkins at roadside vegetable stands has me thinking about Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving celebrations are a big thing for many families, and the ways that people celebrate are varied indeed. From a traditional home made turkey dinner with all of the fixings to elaborate buffets in fine restaurants, Americans sure do like to go all out for Thanksgiving.
One tradition in my family happens even before Thanksgiving. That tradition is the great debate over the location of the Thanksgiving feast. On Thanksgiving, we usually celebrate with my in-laws because we generally travel to see my parents for Christmas. Both my husband and I and my brother in-law and his wife enjoy cooking very much. We all also enjoy entertaining guests in our homes. This is the basis for the great debate – our house or their house.
The Great Thanksgiving Debate is not so much an argument as it is a discussion, and whomever “wins” also “wins” the packaging of the leftovers and the cleanup that is required. Even so, we always have the discussion because both of us couples love to have Thanksgiving at our own homes. So, this year the games will begin tomorrow. I think I’ll call my mother-in-law and see whether she has heard of any plans. Then, I’ll call my brother-in-law and see whether he thinks that it is time to have Thanksgiving at my house. After that, I’ll know whether there is any need for further discussion and/or lobbying. This could be a very funny and interesting conversation or string of conversations because my brother-in-law is an attorney like I am, and I could pretend to be arguing a legal case against him for the fictional right to entertain the family. I am sure that if this happens, both of us will use a lot of big words and end up in a fit of laughter at the silliness of it all.
Do you know where you will be dining this Thanksgiving?