A Thousand Miles From The Place I Was Born

NaBloPoMo #24

Thanksgiving is just a few days away, and I am up to my ears in preparations.  This year, Lauren and I will be spending it in Canada with Tyler and Beth.  Although it will just be the four of us this year, I am incredibly excited.

When I was younger, we always celebrated our Thanksgiving dinners with my Mom’s side of the family.  We had the usual dishes (roast turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy) and also a few dishes that some of my friends never had, like candied yams and baked apples.  My grandmother always made pumpkin pie, pecan pie and mincemeat pie, and we always ate ourselves into oblivion.  After I moved away from home, I thought back to my childhood Thanksgiving dinners with a touch of nostalgia, but without any real pressing need to recreate them.  It actually felt rather grown-up and independent to have my Thanksgiving dinner at the hospital or at a restaurant.

But then I found myself in Utah away from my entire family except my sister, Jen.  We started our own tradition of having a big Thanksgiving dinner every other year (on the years opposite the ones she spent with her in-laws).  We did a great job of re-creating the Thanksgiving dinners of our childhood and prided ourselves in learning how to roast the perfect turkey.  Together, Jen and I would spend the entire day in the kitchen cooking enough food to feed an army, and in the meantime, we would talk about everything under the sun and strengthen the bonds of sisterhood.

When I separated from Lauren’s Dad, we came to a rather unconventional agreement.  Because his parents and extended family were Jewish, they didn’t celebrate Christmas and saw Thanksgiving as their Big Family Holiday.  I knew how much it meant to his parents to have Lauren there, so I offered to give him every Thanksgiving.  In return, I asked him if Lauren could spend every Christmas morning with me, and he agreed.  It was a win-win for both of us.  And as much as I loved having Lauren here every Christmas Eve, sound asleep in the home she had lived in her entire life, I really started to miss being with her on Thanksgiving.  For me, Thanksgiving has always been about family more than anything else.  It is about giving thanks for all the wonderful blessings we have in our life, and it seemed almost criminal to be spending that day without my greatest blessing, Lauren.

So imagine my surprise when my ex announced to me a few months ago that he would not be spending Thanksgiving with his family this year.  I can’t remember why but if I know him, it had to do with something his Mother said or did that annoyed him and just like the adolescent that he is, he was boycotting her special day.  Just to prove that he’s always in control.  So he offered to let me take Lauren for Thanksgiving this year in exchange for allowing him to take her to visit his parents in Phoenix for the second half of Christmas vacation.  It was a no-brainer.  I jumped at the chance.

When I mentioned it to Tyler, we decided that since my sister was spending this Thanksgiving with the in-laws, we should have our Thanksgiving in Canada instead.  We have been anxious to bring Lauren to Canada so she can learn more about where Tyler and Beth are from and what Beth’s everyday life is like.  It seemed like the perfect opportunity.  Because of Lauren’s school schedule, we will only be there for a long weekend, but we will have enough time to have a proper Thanksgiving dinner.  Tyler will be working part of that day and Beth will be in school (Canadian Thanksgiving was in October this year), so Lauren and I will hang out by ourselves and make the traditional meal.  I will miss having my sister in the kitchen with me, but I think Lauren will be a more than acceptable replacement.

And when I sit down to dinner with the three greatest blessings in my life, it will feel just like a Thanksgiving dinner should.