The older I get, the more I favor Thanksgiving as the best holiday of the year. There are several reasons for this, beginning with the fact that there is really just one expectation for the holiday. Gather up your family and spend the better part of the day cooking and eating. Invite friends to join your family. Watch football. Play board games. Tell stories.
I also love Thanksgiving because it is not a gift-giving holiday. There are no advertisements telling me I should buy presents to give on Thanksgiving Day — although retailers do push to get us into a Christmas shopping mindset with Black Friday sales that begin days before we sit down for the turkey dinner.
Still, there are pressures that come with a family-centric holiday. Thanksgiving can agitate old wounds and differences of opinion that make getting along a tall order. And a longing for old ways can trigger grief and loneliness.
A few days ago I told a friend that I feel like I’m right in the middle of things generationally. This will be my 30th Thanksgiving without my parents, who both died young. They have been gone for nearly half of my life, and this makes me sad. But my son and daughter, and five grandchildren, can pack our house and make Thanksgiving very lively for me and my husband.
An item this week in The Rural Blog, a publication of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky, highlighted a five-step “prescription to combat loneliness during the holidays.”
Dr. Trisha Pasricha, a physician and journalist who writes the “Ask a Doctor” column for the Washington Post, writes, “Even if you don’t feel lonely, try this challenge. You may be surprised by how much closer to others these small acts bring you over the next five days.”
Her five steps include:
- Reach out to a former teacher or mentor and thank them.
- Join a group activity.
- Call a relative or friend you haven’t spoken to in a while.
- Ask for help.
- Tackle screen time.
You can read here for Pastiche’s explanation of these five steps.
Meanwhile, I have some practical advice about preparing for Thanksgiving. Last year we published our “Tales from the Thanksgiving Table” series with 10 or so recipes and stories from our readers.
Read the series here for tips on sweet potato pie, cranberry congealed salad and more.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
