Will B. Going to the Movies
It is that time of year again for Thanksgiving—one of the most traditional holidays of the year. Each person and family have many wonderful and some not-so-wonderful traditions when it comes to Thanksgiving.
What are some of your favorite and not-so-favorite traditions? For many people, traditional meals are a major concern. Turkey, of course, cranberry sauce is a must, stuffing better make an appearance, pumpkin pie definitely and the rest varies from family to family. When my mom hosted Thanksgiving, some extras not listed were green bean casserole, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, mashed taters, and a mixture of olives and condiments. Likewise, when I host Thanksgiving, the menu resembles my mom’s Thanksgiving menu.
Some other traditions on Turkey Day include playing catch with the football and if enough are present, a game of football. Although we played rugby with the neighborhood children on a couple of occasions, watching the Cowboys play is an absolute prerequisite—many know I love my Chiefs— but I am also a Cowboys fan. Napping soon follows Thanksgiving dinner after having too much pie, the game, and then the second dinner happens, followed by more napping.
The last tradition that occurs is more of a sport than a tradition to some. It is the good old fashion arguing at the table that—most times than not—started over politics and sometimes football, but really any topic is a go to start that great tradition of arguing with family and friends at the dinner table during Thanksgiving.
My favorite tradition, which always brings warm memories of my mom, is her famous turkey “samich,” which we ate the next day; otherwise, it would not taste as good. The “samich” consisted of bread, Helman’s mayo (not Miracle Whip), horseradish, cranberry sauce, black olives, purple onion and a thick cut tomato. Ahh, heaven in between two slices of bread! The second tradition and a tradition I have not done in maybe 20 years but one we used to do every year without fail, is a trip to the movies. The time and day varied depending on who was coming to Thanksgiving. Sometimes we would go early before Thanksgiving dinner or later after much pie and napping.
Finally, one tradition I absolutely hate even to witness is Black Friday shopping. I have participated in this as a retail worker, and the ideal makes me lose hope in humanity a little bit as I watch humans trample each other over merchandise. However, the one tradition I am bringing back is going to the movies on Thanksgiving. It’s a wonderful tradition that I have ignored way too long.
This is Will B saying, see you at the movies!