During the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving I essentially decided to mentally renounce the holiday for the year. As it isn't a well-known holiday among Europeans (my English friend Helena thought it was just another name for our Christmas Eve celebrations) I thought it would be fairly easy to trick myself out of a Thanksgiving. Though I looked into festivities through the American Church in Paris, I knew that I could not duplicate my traditional annual Thanksgiving experience as it is at home...waking up to the last minutes of the Macy's parade (though we feign interest in the parade, it's usually an afterthought... my sisters and I prefer sleeping in...), sneaking pinches of stuffing when Dad's not looking, fighting the boredom as we wait for the undetermined eating hour (whenever the turkey's ready!). Usually, for me, this means a plethora of Christmas music and movies from which I'm usually barred before Thanksgiving. It's a fairly quiet holiday at my house (until we get to the table and start talking..); we rarely have out-of-town guests, so it's just the immediate family hanging around the house together. Though not surrounded by all the hustle and bustle that is Christmas, Thanksgiving is a great meal (and even better leftovers) and family togetherness to ring in the Christmas season.
Up until a few days before Thanksgiving, I largely ignored the holiday - quite unlike me...I am the holiday spirit girl at home! Then, my friend Alena left for a Thanksgiving in the States. My friend Helena left for England on Wednesday(no holiday, but she rejoined her family). I decided to bring back a touch of the holiday and gave Boy an English lesson on Thanksgiving. We read about the pilgrims and the First Thanksgiving, and I helped him write about what he's thankful for. It was a fun flashback to elementary school holiday activities :)
Thanksgiving morning was harder for me than I had anticipated. Once I thought about my family having our Thanksgiving without me, I had a hard time ignoring the holiday. I missed my family and traditions. When I went to pick up Boy from school for his lunch, I reminded him what day it was, and, to my surprise, he was as excited as if it meant a holiday for him! It really lifted my spirits to hear his decision that "since I'm American, my sister's American, and you're American, we should do Thanksgiving!" It was so funny and so wonderful. The mom offered to have a special dinner if I wanted, and the day was a nice one overall. All day Thursday I didn't do anything particularly Thanksgiving-related, but it was a relaxed, happy day in which I felt truly thankful for this family in France, for the wonderful experiences I have been afforded, and for my amazing family at home. Though I didn't eat cranberry relish and candied sweet potatoes, stuffing and turkey, apple and pumpkin pies, I had a memorable and truly thankful Thanksgiving.
_______________________
another shameless plug:
Check out my sisters' music! They recorded a few songs with Kinley; here is their myspace music page!
Up until a few days before Thanksgiving, I largely ignored the holiday - quite unlike me...I am the holiday spirit girl at home! Then, my friend Alena left for a Thanksgiving in the States. My friend Helena left for England on Wednesday(no holiday, but she rejoined her family). I decided to bring back a touch of the holiday and gave Boy an English lesson on Thanksgiving. We read about the pilgrims and the First Thanksgiving, and I helped him write about what he's thankful for. It was a fun flashback to elementary school holiday activities :)
Thanksgiving morning was harder for me than I had anticipated. Once I thought about my family having our Thanksgiving without me, I had a hard time ignoring the holiday. I missed my family and traditions. When I went to pick up Boy from school for his lunch, I reminded him what day it was, and, to my surprise, he was as excited as if it meant a holiday for him! It really lifted my spirits to hear his decision that "since I'm American, my sister's American, and you're American, we should do Thanksgiving!" It was so funny and so wonderful. The mom offered to have a special dinner if I wanted, and the day was a nice one overall. All day Thursday I didn't do anything particularly Thanksgiving-related, but it was a relaxed, happy day in which I felt truly thankful for this family in France, for the wonderful experiences I have been afforded, and for my amazing family at home. Though I didn't eat cranberry relish and candied sweet potatoes, stuffing and turkey, apple and pumpkin pies, I had a memorable and truly thankful Thanksgiving.
_______________________
another shameless plug:
Check out my sisters' music! They recorded a few songs with Kinley; here is their myspace music page!
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