Thanksgiving - My First

Yesterday was Thanksgiving, my first since Ive been in America. As the day approached, the excitement around me got palpable. I had no idea what all the excitement was about, I mean after all, its just another meal right?

I was excited too, not about thanksgiving, but the long break. I hadn't had a significant break since I got here and coming from a country which loves holidays, I am used to having quite a few. So the day finally arrived and I was to join the PM's and RA's who hadn't gone home for the holidays.

I was impressed by the amount of preparation that went into this meal. I had never heard of much of what was being prepared, let alone eaten it. We watched the Macy's Parade (which I think is an absurd waste of money) while people trickled in. The atmosphere was very relaxed and I was enjoying myself. When the table was laid, we settled down to the meal.

During the meal, I couldn't help realizing that I have done this before. Not Thanksgiving; but friends and family sitting down for a meal in a relaxed way, enjoying each others company and not discussing this professor or that class or running of to finish a paper or make it in time to a lecture. Thanksgiving really has no significance to me in the sense of celebrating the new harvest or the war with the Native Indians. However, coming from a large family and tight knit community, we have many gatherings of this sort, and that's one of the things I have missed since Ive been here. So Ive decided that the significance of Thanksgiving for me will be just that - a gathering to put a brakes on life to celebrate each others company over a meal.