Waking up at 6 a.m. to prepare the 20-pound turkey, boil the cranberries, mash the potatoes and sprinkle cinnamon on the apple pie has been a tradition for as long as I can remember.
Every Thanksgiving I wake up to the sound of utensils banging against pots and the delicious aroma of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and sugar all coming together to give me the hint that there is more than one pie being baked.
Even though my mom stresses, makes a huge mess in the kitchen and ends up yelling at everyone, I know the holiday is in full swing.
I would never trade this in for the world.
The first celebration dates back to the 1600’s when the pilgrims and Indians had a feast together thanking God for their bountiful crop.
That tradition still lives on.
Every fourth Thursday of November, families sit around the dinner table thankful for things and people in their lives.
For my family, we give thanks to each other, our friends, jobs and the food we have. Like my family and many others, we celebrate Thanksgiving the way it was decades ago.
If we cannot put aside our differences for one day out of the year, there is something seriously wrong.
We have 364 other days throughout the year to watch football, shop the sales and be selfish.
It is completely understandable for someone to need a day devoted to themselves, but Thanksgiving is not that day.
Many people understand this concept and prepare a feast for their loved ones. This is the true meaning of Thanksgiving.
Those are the people others should imitate.
I know this holiday has not died because I work in a grocery store and see hundreds of people stocking up on too many ingredients.
Despite the fact many people use Thanksgiving as an excuse to overeat and be lazy, I hate to say it, but at least they are trying to celebrate. They are overeating with their family and that counts for something.
The person who does not get an excuse is the one eating a turkey and cranberry sauce frozen dinner so they can be in front of Macy’s at 4 a.m.