Thanksgiving is a time for remembering what we have and being thankful for it. For many, Thanksgiving holds many traditions and special events that start to take place up until Christmas day or New Years day.
Thanksgiving is the beginning of a two month celebration of family, love, togetherness and of course a ton of food.
Thanksgiving started with the pilgrims who came from England to escape religious persecution and the food tradition came because it was the end of the harvest season. While we all learned this in elementary school, sometimes we might forget the true meaning of thanksgiving, which is simply to give thanks.
“My favorite tradition is going to my aunt’s house every year and eating my grandmother’s mashed potatoes,” Maureen Hammond, biology pre-med major, said.
Many of us partake in traditions such as being around family we may not have seen for a while, watching football games or maybe having some pie eating contests.
“As a Spaniard, I look forward to Thanksgiving because it is a holiday that we don’t have in Spain. I like it because it brings families together and it allows us to reflect on everything that is good in our lives,” Javier Gil-Gordillo, Spanish professor said.
Many people love the tradition of eating an endless platter of home-cooked food. When you think about thanksgiving, you may think about the typical food that is served. However, sophomore English major Melissa Mininno and her family do it differently.
“My favorite Thanksgiving tradition is going to my grandparents house with my entire Italian side of my family. Not only do we have the turkey and the normal foods on Thanksgiving but we also have raviolis,” Mininno said.
While a lot of people like to think of Thanksgiving as a time for food, why not include a good high school football rivalry?
“High school football rivalry is my favorite part of Thanksgiving. Bristol vs. Morrisville high schools play each other. It’s been going on for 81 years and my mom graduated from Bristol while my dad, my siblings and I graduated and also live in Bristol,” Ryan Bunda, junior criminology major, said.
“My favorite part of Thanksgiving is waking up in the morning and being excited to eat my mom’s cooking all day long,” Chima Okere, senior business administration major, said.
Another tradition that many families incorporate every Thanksgiving is watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
“My mom cooks five different types of bread and none of us can decide which flavor to try next,” Scott Preston, sophomore information systems major, said.
Freshman exercise science major Zachary Fortenbaugh’s favorite part is just being with his family and being able to enjoy all of the food prepared.
“Each year we all make a toast to my nana who passed away right before Thanksgiving and we all get teary-eyed and play ‘I just called to say I love you’ by Stevie Wonder because that was her favorite song,” Kadee Schwalm, junior business major, said.
“My entire family comes to my house and we have a big family dinner,” Megan Hawkinson, junior special education major, said. “It’s nice because that’s the one day that everyone gets to be together.”
