I look forward to Thanksgiving every year, not for the holiday itself but for the almost week-long time of no school. This year it has been a much-needed moment of happiness without any worries before going back to school. For both students and teachers, it has been a time to be with family and watch as many movies as you want. It gives you the time to do anything and everything you want without being on a strict schedule. That freedom both creates boredom but also the much-needed time to relax.
This year my Thanksgiving break has ended up being spent with family and friends. Reflecting back on my week of break I will list the 4 memorable things I did during the time.
1. FaceTime with friends
During this break it was filled with tons of visiting family, my friends have also gone to see their family. Our schedule hasn’t matched up throughout the entire Thanksgiving break. Instead of going to meet them, we spent quite a few nights catching up and playing games. We have started playing games from our childhood that bring back good memories like Among Us, Roblox Five Nights at Freddy’s, Scribble, and Exposed. We stayed up all night talking and playing games until we became delirious with lack of sleep. Realizing that my friend had to go to Chicago early in the morning we abruptly ended the call. It was really fun to go back to play these games before I went to college. It felt like the end of an era for me to end it with one good moment.
2. Thanksgiving day
My parents had decided that this year instead of hosting we went to a family friend’s house. They hosted a Thanksgiving party for everyone who lived in the same village back in our home country. I had believed that it was just a dinner and we were going to do something the rest of the day. Although when we got to their house at 3 pm I was very confused. We ended up eating both lunch and dinner there. While waiting for the turkey for 2 hours I had expected it to be good. Although the turkey sadly did not deliver to my expectations. We ended up staying there and talking for 8 hours, my parents had a lot of fun. Although staying in one place for such a long time and not having anyone my age had taken a toll on me. I had ended up spending my time there watching my phone or talking to people.
3. Family
My aunt got married last year and ended up moving to New York. Instead of our usual going to her house for Thanksgiving Eve and then coming to my house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was spent a week before Thanksgiving picking up her and my uncle from the airport. It felt a lot different from last year but this year new memories were made. By watching our favorite old Bollywood movies and eating foods that bring back moments of my childhood. I used to see my dad’s side of the family all the time, although both my cousins who live decently near me have ended up going to college, and one with her own business. Seeing each other has become less and less through the years. We have spent mornings on FaceTime calls made by my grandma to see how we are doing.
4. New years
For as long as I can remember I have always been to a place where all Newari through the Midwest come together to celebrate the New Year. I remember as a child I would play with all the other younger kids there until the end which was always at 1 am-2 am. As I grew up all the kids that I played with ended up
moving away or not coming anymore. My parents had instilled in me that I would know and understand why it was import
ant to go. With that, there was not a year that I wouldn’t go. This year my younger cousin did a dance with one of her friends. It has been fun watching her grow up from when she was a baby to now being an 8-year-old dancing on stage. Before people started leaving there were adults dancing to any music available. All the children ended up falling asleep on the chairs after waiting for their parents to be done. I’ve never been anxious about a senior year until people started saying that this would be the last time I do that. To me, that is the worst part of leaving a place you grew up, rather than the act of change.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on your Thanksgiving snapshot. I have enjoyed reading your blogs this semester.
Biswo, between the family gatherings and calls with friends, your Thanksgiving seemed really eventful! I can definitely relate to the feelings of boredom. But like you said, I also think it’s overall still a much-needed time to relax, and is a time I appreciate as a reset before the stress of the upcoming finals before winter break. From your picture the turkey looks good, but from personal experience I do know a lot of food doesn’t taste as good as it looks. The long and dragged out dinner parties with parents’ friends I have also experienced before, especially when there’s no one my age, I always end up leaving at midnight half-asleep, with my phone out of battery. These occasions can be draining sometimes, but at least there’s a lot of good food. Your experience celebrating New Year’s with others from your culture seems very memorable, and although leaving the place you grew up in is difficult I think it really helps to keep the mindset that you can come back and visit whenever you want. Overall, I really liked reading through your Thanksgiving experiences!
Biswo, I loved reading your blog and I honestly found myself nodding along to a lot you had mentioned. I do think that it’s best to really take in this year and cherish it due it being our very last year not only in high school but also before our big send-off to whatever we choose to do next in our lives. I love that you played some games with friends! I would’ve played but alas we were all too busy to play however, whenever I get the chance to play with my friends I’m starting to try to spend as much quality time as I can with them because I know it won’t ever be the same again. I love seeing that you spend time with your family even if you may not know most of the people who come to parties or have some random kids barge into your room 🙂