NOT Overthinking: Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is about food. Full stop.

….yes, it's actually that simple. When you peel back all those cutesie pilgrim myths, ignore decades of aggressive add campaigns from the turkey farmers, and put the 'Invading Colonizer Vs. Protestant Refugees' argument on hold, Thanksgiving is about food.

Food is a simple, trivial word. It's not a trivial matter.

Growing up, I never had to skip a meal. Unfortunately, I've still had experience with hunger. Did you know that if don't eat the right things, you can starve on a full stomach? No, I'm kidding. It's not a 'fat rich people problem.' There's more than one way to go hungry.

On my mother's side of the family, there's the maddening battle with blood-sugar. My late father dealt with chronic malabsorption issues after his colon was removed. I personally have lovely gene mutation that stunts my Vitamin B conversion (my food allergies are just the f-you cherry on this mess). Having something to eat isn't the same as having food.

Creating a meal that feeds your needs takes mindfulness. Feeding other people... that's a tall order.

My first big holiday after a peanut-triggered-ambulance ride was eye-opening. In middle-class America, feeding people is a dying art. Thanksgiving is a time to show off that family recipe or order a luxury cut of meat. My newly restricted diet made waves.

Out of a six dish spread, plus desserts, there wasn't much to eat. I think I had something from the relish tray and meat, no gravy. It was awkward for me and the cooks. Thanksgiving is a feast. What does it say when one person is sighing wistfully at everybody else's plates?

I realized 'sharing a meal' isn't just eating in the same building. Food is social bonding. Hunger is divisive. Getting left out of the group while you're hungry.... well, fights have started for less.

Luckily, my family cares about each other more than having a postcard perfect meal. We shuffled the menu a bit. I still can't eat every dish, but I have options. I have food – I'm not left behind.

Does my aunt still get frustrated with me triple checking her recipes cards? Yes. Do my crazy cousins still talk about football and that trophy buck they hope to bag this year? Yes. Do I still get nosy questions about my life choices? Yes. Thanksgiving is not stress free.

However, I just take a deep breath and remember the true core of any harvest celebration. It's taking a moment to stop and say, “Thank God! Nobody has to starve to death this year!”

Thanksgiving is about the food.

Edited 2020 - Cause I later read Smithsonian: Myths of Thanksgiving and I don't want my Cherokee 'Cousin' giving me that look for not double checking my prose.