Thanksgiving is when people recognize what they have to be thankful for with everything and everyone in your life. There are many Thanksgiving traditions that families create which gives that feeling of thankfulness.
Cabrini University strived to be a very welcoming place that is full of diverse students. They share something with the first inhabitants of Plymouth Rock. Native Americans and Pilgrims shared a harvest feast in 1621 and was called deemed the first Thanksgiving. This feast celebrated their first feast in the new world known as America.
Photo from Wikimedia Commons.
Thanksgiving is a holiday that was started in America, but people from different cultures celebrate the holiday still.
Nicholas Louis, a Cabrini University sophomore studying exercise science, was born in the United States but has a Haitian background and family that lives in Haiti. As a result, Thanksgiving is just like any other day for him.
“I don’t really do anything special for Thanksgiving. It is just a normal day to my family,” Louis said.
Louis explained he understands why Thanksgiving is celebrated and he is very thankful for everything in his life, but he does not go out of his way to celebrate Thanksgiving.
“I am thankful [for my] family and to be alive. I am thankful for my family and everything they do for me,” Louis said.
Many American families view Thanksgiving as an important holiday because they feel it brings families closer.
Photo from Wikimedia Commons.
Elvis Puente, a Cabrini University student studying business, is originally from New York, but his parents are from the Dominican Republic. He also still has family there.
“Family always comes over my house for dinner and to watch football, but we don’t eat the traditional Thanksgiving food,” Puente said.
Puente went on to list the names of foods eaten by his family, but turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes were left off of the list.
“We eat pork, mac and cheese, ham with pineapples around it, biscuits and rice,” Puente said.
While what Puente’s family eat differs from the typical American family, they still celebrate being thankful just like everyone else.
“I am thankful for my mom and my sisters, and being able to have a place to sleep and eat every night. I really appreicate everything my family does for me,” Puente said.
Runako Brown, a sophomore student at Cabrini studying exercise science, is from Jamaica and has relatives in New York. Brown usually has a DJ in the house during his family party on Thanksgiving with a lot of dancing.
“My family eats curry goat, oxtail, brown stew turkey and rice,” Brown said. “Sometimes, I go to Manhattan to walk around and go to stores with my family,” Brown said.
Thanksgiving is a time that families come together and enjoy the company of one another. Though people of different cultures experience the holiday in different ways, everyone still takes the opportunity to be thankful for all the positivity in their lives.
Brown said, “Thanksgiving is a time where I get to spend [time] with my family and just be around everyone that supports me in life.”
