Sean Walsh

Professor Jesse Miller

English 110 H4

10/3/2017

More Than a Meal

I shove the door to my grandparents house open and immediately I am hit with the dense, warm aroma of a delicious Thanksgiving meal being cooked. My mouth instantaneously begins to water and my stomach growls like an angry pack of wolves. I hug my grandparents and although I am happy to see them, I can’t help but remain focused on the exquisite meal that I am about to devour, and they understand because they feel the same way I do. The seconds feel like hours and the minutes feel like days as I await for the feast to be complete. When it finally is, I can’t even decide what I want to put on my plate first. My eyes survey the soft mashed potatoes that look like moist clouds, the golden-brown stuffing, the flakey rolls, and most importantly, the tender, yet perfectly moist turkey. I put a little of everything on my plate and sit down and begin to attack my plate. Every bite is utter bliss and despite my extreme hunger, I savor every bite and enjoy the moment because I recognize that the remaining Thanksgiving dinners I’ll share with my family is unfortunately finite. I look around at the rest of my family surrounding me at the table and notice how they interact, laughing and joking with each other, yet still creating a lingering feeling of togetherness. I see my Aunts and Uncles around the table and think about how they feel about the meal in front of us. All of them, and even all of my cousins have had it more than I have because I am the youngest in the family. The Thanksgiving feast that my grandparents cook for our family every year never ceases to amaze me and is my favorite meal, not only because of the varying delicious foods that comprise it, but because of the enlightening effect it has on my family, the vivid memories of eating the meal as a child, and the positive feelings of happiness and love mixed with the feelings of nostalgia that arise while eating it.

For my family and I, our Thanksgiving celebration and our delicious feast signifies more than meets the eye; the meal has a deeper value for us. I feel that many people really forget the true meaning of each holiday and we begin to take them for granted. We just think of them as a day where we get together and eat food, and in some instances give and receive presents. Although my family does participate in those practices that hundreds of millions of people also participate in world-wide, we never forget the true meaning and value of each holiday. When I look at the meal in from of me on Thanksgiving, I see more than just turkey, stuffing, potatoes, and vegetables. I see the value and the meaning of it. I see how lucky I am to be able to have such a loving family, be eating such a wholesome meal, and how lucky I am to live the life I live. I see the time and the effort that my grandparents put into the meal because they both love my family so much. The meal also signifies time I get to spend with my family catching up and visiting with them. I don’t see my family too often because of how busy all of our schedules are, as all of my cousins, including myself, are either in college or have graduated and have busy jobs and my aunts and uncles all have hectic adult lives as well. Although my cousins have all grown up quickly and have embraced their adult lives, nothing has changed in my relationship with them. We still joke around and reminisce about things we have done together just like we always have. When we do get together as a family, though, it is very special and I value the time we spend together very much.

The wonderful Thanksgiving dish also evokes many feelings from within me, one of those being a certain sense of nostalgia. When I look down at my plate and see the same food I have eaten every Thanksgiving for my entire life, it brings me back to when I was younger and what my perception was at that time. I can remember one Thanksgiving in particular, I was probably about six or seven years old, and I sat at the table and thought about how much younger and smaller I felt than everyone else. I am the youngest in my family by about two or three years, so when I was that age, everyone else was much bigger than me. I don’t know why, but I think about how I felt at that Thanksgiving every single year and laugh at how much things have changed some twelve years later. Although somewhat depressing and pessimistic of myself, the meal also evokes some sadness in me; even though my Thanksgiving celebrations with my family have not come to an end yet, I know that I won’t be able to have that meal forever and some day, I won’t celebrate Thanksgiving with the people I have for my entire life. Yet, simultaneously, I feel happy because for the time being, I still have time with my family left, and many delicious Thanksgiving meals courtesy of my grandparents left to eat.

Upon talking to my grandmother and grandfather about what this dish means to them, no matter what they said, their answers always went back to the reoccurring theme of family. My grandmother, when asked what making the dish meant to her, explained that “[she] had always taught [her] kids that family was the most important thing. Thanksgiving isn’t only about the food, it’s about family. Family is the biggest thing” and that is what they thought about while making the dish. My grandparents had always instilled the value of family into my mom and her brothers, and it is very evident because they all live within a ten mile radius and talk several times every week. Thus, my parents also instilled the value of family into me, and it is clear because I have a very close relationship with my grandparents and talk to them very frequently. Although my grandparents understand how much they mean to me and how much our entire family means to me, they didn’t really think that the reason I liked the dish was because of the family aspect. My grandmother thought that I liked the dish just because of the delicious food and my grandfather exclaimed “He doesn’t have to make it!”, which lined up perfectly with his humorous personality. But, to their surprise, I explained to them that most of what I had written about was how much the family aspect of the holiday meant to me and how the meal signified something larger than just food. They both agreed that this was also their favorite meal, as my grandmother stated that “On Thanksgiving, the whole family usually can make it so we are all together, but on Christmas sometimes people are working or have other places to be, so it’s really special when everyone is together” which truly resembles the essence of a holiday.

Overall, this dish is so meaningful to my family and I not just because of the food we are actually eating, but because of the value and the feelings that it brings. It means that my entire family comes together on a day to give thanks for what we have and truly appreciate each other. Although some people of my age may not understand the true meaning of holidays and think they are cheesy, which at some times can be true, to be able to come together with your family to share a meal is an unbelievable privilege. At the end of the day, holidays are more than what we are actually eating, but what we are doing while we eat and who we share the meal with. 

Pictures from Thanksgiving 2002:Recipe/Menu:
(I thought because there was so many different items I could include every component of the meal rather than a recipe)