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What Has Been Your Most Memorable Thanksgiving?
By NATALIE PROULX NOV. 17, 2017
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CreditAndrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Do you celebrate Thanksgiving? How do you celebrate and with whom? Do you like this holiday?
In “A Thanksgiving Snapshot: Readers Share Their Holiday Stories,” Julia Simon writes:
So many of us come together to celebrate Thanksgiving, but the holiday means something different to everyone. We asked for a snapshot of your Thanksgiving — a story or a tradition or a dish that helps define your holiday, and hundreds of you responded. You shared funny stories, about the turkeys that were too big for your ovens. You shared tragic memories, about experiencing unbelievable heartache on a day that is supposed to bring people together. And you shared tales about overcoming hardship to create a memorable meal. Here are your stories; together, they help tell the story of the holiday itself.
These responses have been edited for length and clarity.
‘My mother couldn’t stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for Thanksgiving’
About 45 years ago, my mother made a last-minute run to the grocery store. There was a pizza parlor next to the store, and she watched as three Marines entered. My mother couldn’t stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for Thanksgiving dinner, so she dragged them home. She cooked enough for a small army every night anyway, so three more hearty appetites wouldn’t make a dent. These three young men spent the day with our family, played board games, watched football and shared our Thanksgiving dinner. They even helped with the dishes. I think they were the most polite people my parents ever had over. — Sandy Stinson, Santa Barbara, Calif.
‘The shelter didn’t have an oven’
I was homeless and living on New York City streets, in foster homes and homeless shelters. One Thanksgiving, I received a donated turkey — a thoughtful, generous gift, for which I was grateful. My shelter, however, didn’t have an oven where I could roast my dinner. Ultimately, I cut meat off the turkey bones, boiling it in a small pot on a hot plate — my only cooking appliance. The generosity of the donated turkey was tempered by the indignity I felt as a hungry person, scrambling to find any possible way to prepare my Thanksgiving meal. — Debra Vizzi, Hillside, N.J.
‘A possum. In the pie.’
When I arrived at my parents’ home a few hours before dinner, the pie I baked was still very warm. The refrigerator was already packed and bursting with food. It was a particularly chilly Thanksgiving that year, cold enough that I thought I’d just set the pie out on the back porch to chill until dessert time. The curtains had been drawn all evening, and when I parted them to open the sliding door and retrieve the pie I saw — to my horror — a small possum with its face buried in my perfectly cooked, beautifully seasoned pumpkin pie. I SCREAMED. It froze. My brother came rushing over (probably suspecting I’d actually dropped the pie) and witnessed the same scene. A possum. In the pie. — Sonja Groset, Lake Forest Park, Wash.
Students: Read the entire article, then tell us:
— Which of the stories was your favorite and why?
— Why do you celebrate Thanksgiving? What does the holiday mean to you?
— Give us a “snapshot” of your Thanksgiving. What has been your most memorable Thanksgiving and why?
My favorite story was about when the mom took in three marines for thanksgiving dinner instead of them eating pizza for thanksgiving. It was my favorite because its act of kindness and nobody really has to do that and she let three people who served for our country into their homes and that's an act of thankfulness. I celebrate thanksgiving to give thanks about being alive, for family, friends, the food we eat everyday, the clothes on our back and the roof over our head. Thanksgiving to me is just my whole family coming together once a year and enjoying each others company and the amazing food. My “snapshot” of my favorite thanksgiving is when my mom was alive and made the best food ever and she would just light up the room with her happiness and love for everything. That has been my memorable thanksgiving because she made me feel happy during that time.
ReplyDeletethat is a great story. your mom really showed that she respected the fact that everyone should have a great thanksgiving meal with people/families. she really went out of her way to give respect to these 3 marines.
DeleteMy most favorite story out of all of them is, “My mother couldn’t stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for Thanksgiving” because the mother was nice enough to help and just be polite with cooking something else than just pizza. She didn’t know if they didn’t have family to spend it with but she basically probably didn’t want them to feel alone or just as there was no need or reason to celebrate in family. Also, the mother didn’t care or even know them enough to let them in their home but she knew she wasn’t going to just let them be there and at the end she even said they were one of the nicest people she knows and they even helped up clean up.
ReplyDeleteI celebrate Thanksgiving every year because it just brings family together and everyone has a good time, sometimes you even get to see family that you haven’t seen in a long time and just get to spend the day together, catching up to everything that has been going on. What Thanksgiving means to me is that you should be thankful for everything that you had and family. It also means that you’re with all your family that you don’t usually see and you get to spend it with them and have a big dinner with them. My favorite Thanksgiving day that i got to spend time with my family was last year when i was going to spend it at my grandmas house in florida but as time passed,so my family got together to figure out what we were going to cook and take so we can go spend it with them, as time got closer. It was my favorite one because we didn’t leave them out and didn’t want them to feel lonely and at the end of the night, they were happy we all got together and spent it with them. Everyone was happy and everyone had a great time.
Spending time with family members that you haven't seen in a lot time can be so much fun and also emotional. I really like that you are thankful to see your family because without family, there's no place to unite and call home.
DeleteIt is cool that we picked the same story. It really shows the Thanksgiving spirit. I think seeing your family on the holidays is great. That is what makes it more special.
DeleteAustin MacClemmy
ReplyDeleteWe all got taught that thanksgiving was to give thanks to all that we got and all that we have. To me thanksgiving is to spend time with your family and to be thankful to have each other. It tells you that you shouldn't take granted of the things you have because when you don't have them you would do anything to get them back.
This thanksgiving i went to my aunt's house for dinner. She lives about an hour and fifteen minutes away in Delran, New jersey. My mom, my brother and myself went to the dinner to see my whole family. I celebrate thanksgiving to show my family that i'm here to thank them for loving me and sending me cards and saying happy birthday through the years. I'm not one of those family members that tries to hide in the corner and not talk. I go around and talk and catch up with all my family members because you never know if you will see them again. Not everyday is a given.
During this thanksgiving i went to delran for dinner. It was a great time, i have soo much fun with my family. We ate tons of food and we also had lots of deserts. The best part was making crafts with my family at a big table talking and laughing. Nothing is better than making memories with your family.
My best memory of thanksgiving was about 5 years ago. I was with my family in kentucky, sitting at the table making our plates for dinner. My grandfather asked my family and i if anyone wanted to say grace. Of course with my energy and enthusiasm i jumped out of my seat and screamed “me” not knowing what i was getting into. Everyone was quiet and my grandfather told me to say grace. I looked around the table and took a deep breath and i yelled with my loudest voice the word “grace”. I didn't know what i get myself into because everyone started laughing. I didn't know that true meaning of saying grace.
My most memorable thanksgiving was my last thanksgiving with my grandmother around. We always celebrate thanksgiving with my grandmother, my grandfather, my aunt cindy, my uncle ron, my mom and dad, my brother mike and his girlfriend amanda. My grandmother would normally make the turkey, the meatballs and pasta. My mom would make the ham and the sweet potatoes. My grandmother always made the best meatballs, she made them from scratch and had her own recipe that she never told anyone about. My dad nicknamed them “nanaballs” she would make them for every family gathering and they are seriously one of a kind. She passed away five years ago and now thanksgiving is never the same, But we still try. Now, my mom makes the turkey and the sweet potatoes and my aunt cindy does the pasta and meatballs. My aunt cindy this year almost had my grandmother's exact meatballs. They tasted so close and it was so good to eat, especially because i never thought after losing her i would not ever eat any meatballs that tasted the way my grandmothers did. I like this holiday but it will never be the same without my grandmother, now that there is an empty seat at the table. My favorite story was “my mother couldnt stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for Thanksgiving” that was my favorite story because no matter what, stranger or not everyone should get to enjoy the reality of a “thanksgiving feast”. Everyone deserves to have a family to celebrate it with, whether they are blood related or not. And in that story it shows that the women had enough guts to reach out to people she did not even know that she saw walking into a pizza parlor. It shows that no matter all the bad in the world there are still some good people in the world. Not everyone has bad intentions, some still have good hearts. Everyone deserves to celebrate with family, blood related or not.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite story was “The shelter didn’t have an oven,” because the homeless person was very lucky he received the turkey and something to be thankful for on thanksgiving. I do not celebrate thanksgiving but at the same time. I’m thankful for everything I have and what i’ve achieved so far. Since I’m living in America. My Dad’s wife celebrates thanksgiving and I live in the house with them, so I have to be apart of it. Thanksgiving holiday means a lot to me. The first thing comes to mind is giving thanks for what I have now and life itself. I’m thankful for my mother, everyone that is around me and who supports me. So far, I’ve celebrated thanksgiving three times. The most memorable thanksgiving is when I first came to america. Thanksgiving get together was at my house and I got to meet new people and talk about our cultures and what we would be doing on that day. Thanksgiving isn’t always fun for me. I like to be around people who I’m related to and people who I had shared memories with. I want to be around my family and talk about the things they and I have missing out on while we were in separate places. Thanksgiving don’t have to be about eating turkey and the food that’s serving but what it should mainly be about is why don’t we appreciates and love each other more.
ReplyDeleteYes I do celebrate Thanksgiving. For me Thanksgiving is not so important holiday. The reason why is because it is because you just seat and eat. It is okay you spend a evening for your family but feel it like any other sit down in the table and eat with your family. This holiday i do celebrates with family members. Yes I do like it because who would not like a topic that have to be with food. Everyone loves food especially me if people mess with food and trow that will be me mad. There are people in the world that does not get to eat and by people throwing food away that is mess up. People will enjoy this holiday some people do not it is just to enjoy a nice dinner with your family.
ReplyDeleteI kind of disagree on your response. Thanksgiving is very important to most people. Thanksgiving is about thanking someone for what they have done for you. Thanksgiving is not just about eating. It is about spending time with family and giving thanks.
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ReplyDeleteThe short story I liked the most was the first one, where Sandy Stinson said, “My mother couldn’t stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for Thanksgiving.” It was my favorite because her mother invited over three marines to spend Thanksgiving at her house. She cooked enough for a small army every night too. They all played games and had a nice thanksgiving dinner. This was honestly the nicest thing anyone could do.
We celebrate Thanksgiving because it’s a day of giving thanks for having food and life itself. I celebrate Thanksgiving it’s also celebrated in Canada, the United States, some of the Caribbean islands, and Liberia, but not everyone celebrates this holiday. This was started by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World. To me this holiday means that we should all give thanks for having food and a family. Although, not everyone thinks this holiday is important because you basically just sit and eat. I honestly like Thanksgiving because i don't get to see my family all together that often and have a nice meal as a family, so this holiday means alot to me. It's a day to give thanks for what you have and life.
Out of all the stories my favorite is the possum in the pie because it must have been the cutest thing to see a possum eating a pie. Now if it was my pie I would have been mad because I would have been waiting all day to eat my pie then this random animal comes out of nowhere just to eat it. I would have been the maddest person on earth on thanksgiving.I wonder what they did to the possum after he stopped eating. I celebrate thanksgiving to be with my family since most of my family always works and I don’t see them very often. It is very nice just to sit down with the family and just to talk about what is happening in each other's lives. Also I just really like the food and my mom cooks a lot of food and my father and uncle bring food from where they work. The holiday means to mean is that I get to be with my family and I get to get out of school . Also I have to come into work on thanksgiving but that's ok i'm making more money than usual. I think the most memorable thanksgiving I had ever had was when my grandparents came over to my house and we all just and a good time with everyone and just eating really good food made by my mom and grandmother. This was when I was only 10 years old. But the recent thanksgiving was really good since i was with my best friend when we ate but the only downside was that I had to work. Then again I work with my brother and my coworkers are great and I love working there. I am wondering what the next thanksgiving will be like because I would be a senior and a whole year would past and it would be crazy. I hope everyone else had a great thanksgiving.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite story out of the three stories was the one named "‘My mother couldn’t stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for Thanksgiving’. I loved that she brought the three marines to her house and shared Thanksgiving in her home with them. It kind of reminds me when the pilgrims and Indians shared Thanksgiving feast together. It shows the true meaning of the spirit of Thanksgiving. Sharing their meal and day with strangers. Thanksgiving to me is not that important. We don't go to church or dress up. We used to go to family's houses for Thanksgiving but now we spend it at home. Sometimes we even do it the next day because my mom works on Thanksgiving. All it really is , is the parade, eating, and movies they play every year. We usually eat lasagna ( the Italian part), turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, stuffed mushrooms and salad. Of course we have pies for dinner, my favorite though is when we have cheese cake. This year Thanksgiving wasn't great. My mom had to work during the day so we had dinner without her. My Uncle came with his girlfriend. Let's just say that didn't end well. Lol. The good part was that I spend time with my mom and sister going shopping after she came home and ate. It was fun but tiring. So as you can see Thanksgiving is not much of a important holiday to me. The good thing is that Christmas is One month away.
ReplyDeleteI do celebrate Thanksgiving. I celebrate Thanksgiving with my family and some friends. My favorite short story is “ A Possum in the Pie”. It is my favorite because it was kind of funny and creepy at the same time. I kind of found it funny because they accidentally cooked a pie with a possum inside. It was kind of creepy because there was a dead animal inside a pie and I was curious how it went inside the pie. I celebrate Thanksgiving because it is fun eating the turkey and some other delicious food. To me, this holiday means that people being thankful for what they have and appreciating their family and friends for giving them what they need and supporting them. People should thank their parents because they are the ones that guide them as they grew up and help them overcome their obstacle and supporting them for what they want to do. My most memorable Thanksgiving was last week. It was my most memorable one because the food was great and my family finally cooked a great turkey. I had the best turkey because it was more juicy than the other years. The reason I did not like the turkey from the other years because it was so dry.
ReplyDeleteHey Iain we both like the same stories form the article. I also found the possum in the pie very funny. I think tha we both have the same idea of what the meaning of thanksgiving really is and what it means to us. Also in the same way we both celebrate thanksgiving by eating delicious food like every one else ,also I like a juicy turkey as well more than a dry one.
Delete“ My mother couldn't stand the idea of anyone eating pizza for thanksgiving” is my favorite story because it's a woman who sees three marine soldiers going to eat pizza for thanksgiving but the meaning of thanksgiving is to sit around eat and have a good time with your family. And these marine soldiers weren't going to have this and she invited them over to have thanksgiving with them because she knows they deserve better because they sacrifice their life for this country.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you celebrate Thanksgiving? What does the holiday mean to you? I celebrate thanksgiving because it's a holiday that brings you and your close ones together. But what does this holiday mean to me is that we should be thankful for the things and people we have around us and be grateful.
My most remarkable thing is waiting to go black friday shopping with all my friends back in long branch.
I liked the that was titled my mother couldn’t stand the thought of anyone eating pizza on thanksgiving. I liked this one because it shows how kind people could be on thanksgiving to take them into there house and feed them just because they were just going to eat pizza which is still get them a good thing to eat but at the same time it was nice since these people served our country and they deserve a good meal this is why i picked this one because of the mom being nice to those people and they helped out with the stuff in the house. I celebrate thanksgiving because it brings all our family because I don’t see my family expect for these kind of holidays so then people could come together and have a big feast and talk about all the stuff they have done for the past since other times you don’t really do those kind of things during other holidays or we don’t eat all those things. What the holiday means to me is that you could bring everyone together and it started all the way like back then and we have had joy and fun during the times that i have saw and done it will help me and other people and seems like a holiday to help people. My most memorable thanksgiving was about 5 years ago when i used to go to my grandparents house instead of going out to eat but when we did have it at there house we had more people there and we could talk about stuff that we did and we could actually run around or make stuff that we didn’t have to wait for or could have alot of stuff but its better now that we just go out to eat because my grandma always had to cook and she always cooked for holidays so it was better that we just go out to eat or do stuff and if we went out earlier people could go to black friday shopping.
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