Biblical Basis For Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is Biblical, although the references to thanksgiving that are mentioned in the Bible don’t necessarily correlate with the American tradition of turkey and dressing. Numerous verses specifically mention thanksgiving: I will praise the name of God with a song. I will magnify him with thanksgiving. (Psalm 69:30); Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Philippians 4:6); Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. (Psalm 100:4); But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. (Jonah 2:9).
American Tradition of Thanksgiving Associated with Feasting
Fast forward several hundred years to our American Thanksgiving, which has become more associated with feasting than gratitude. Ideally, both ideas should be incorporated into this special celebration, but alas, after spending days preparing for a huge meal and all the work that meal entails, I am often left with a less-than-grateful attitude at the end of the day.
Thanksgiving at my house has remained pretty much the same as it has been for the past thirty-five years—I spend it in the kitchen just like my mother did. Somewhere along the line, the guilt gene was passed down to me that unless I spent Thanksgiving (and the day before) laboring in a hot kitchen, my family would be deprived of a holiday tradition so essential that it would go on to scar them somewhere down the road, leaving them emotionally stunted and possibly causing a psychotic breakdown. Not being able to live with the consequences that going out to eat might entail, I perform the yearly ritual with as much grace as I can muster. Besides, eating leftovers for the week following Thanksgiving until everyone is sick of them is part of the nostalgic experience I want my family to remember and cherish.
Thanksgiving Like Mom Used to Make Versus My Shortcuts
But I have to admit that unlike my mother, who made everything from scratch, I fudge a little. As a new bride, I asked Mom how to make dressing. Mom always made homemade dressing by setting out pieces of bread to harden several days before Thanksgiving. Then she ground them into bread crumbs and mixed them with various seasonings before packing them into the turkey. On Thanksgiving morning, the delicious aroma of onions and celery cooking in butter, which would later be added to the dressing, filled the entire house. So, the first year, I dutifully followed her directions and made homemade dressing. I had no idea there was any other way to make dressing. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Pepperidge Farm had ready-made, already seasoned bread crumbs or cubes to which I simply had to add chicken broth and butter. I also didn’t realize there was any other way to cook dressing other than inside the turkey. For years, I crammed dressing into the bird’s cavity (I guess that’s when it officially becomes stuffing) because that’s how Mom always did it, so it had to be the right way. The year we deep-fried the turkey, I finally succumbed to cooking the dressing in the oven by itself, although I knew it wouldn’t taste nearly as good. Somehow, it tasted fine.
Mom also cracked and picked out every nut she used in any recipe. She spent hours digging out walnuts, pecans, and almonds. I still feel a twinge of guilt when I buy already-chopped nuts. Mom made all her pies from scratch, including making and rolling out the crust. I can count on one hand (one finger, actually) the number of times I have made homemade pie crust. We were living in Indonesia at the time, where pie crusts weren’t readily available in stores. But here in the good ole USA, beautiful Pillsbury pie crusts are obtainable for a reasonable price. I’m sure Mom would be outraged at the money I waste on chopped nuts and ready-made pie crusts. Well, probably not pie crusts because I rarely buy those. Instead, I have discovered that Sara Lee makes excellent pies that probably taste better than whatever I would attempt to make from scratch. Some pies don’t even require baking. You just let them thaw at room temperature. It doesn’t get any easier than that. (Except for having to justify in my mind to my mother, who has been gone for thirty-nine years, why I wasted five dollars on a pie.)
For a long time, I made homemade gravy from the turkey drippings, just like Mom always did. Then I graduated to gravy packets and finally to the delicious gravy that comes in a jar. I do cringe a little when we throw out the turkey drippings, as well as the turkey neck and giblets, but what am I going to save them for? Mom always cooked the neck and the giblets for the dogs. My poor dogs get dog food on Thanksgiving, just like every other day. I’m ashamed to admit I never basted my turkey like Mom did, either. I just never understood how pouring the juice over the skin that was going to be cut off anyway did anything to make the turkey moist. (The internet backs me up on this.) I did, however, used to bring home a big syringe and needle from the veterinary clinic where I worked and inject melted butter right into the meat while it roasted.
I still make homemade mashed potatoes because instant mashed potatoes are yucky. Mom taught me that. And I buy brown-and-serve rolls because even Mom didn’t make her own bread. But unless we have company, there is no way I’m digging out the fine china and silver like Mom did. I’m not about to hand wash the china before and after dinner and polish the silver. I don’t care if we eat off Corelle dishes and my silverware doesn’t match.
So, there you have it. I feel much better getting these things off my chest. I only wish I could pass the guilt gene to my kids. But unfortunately, they’re adopted.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
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