Alt+Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving: a time of long-standing traditions, family gatherings, and feasting, right? We can all most certainly agree that these are some of the foundations of this colonizing holiday, but we’d be amiss not to acknowledge that times have changed. People are finding new ways to celebrate Thanksgiving, from what we actually eat on the holiday to how we go about celebrating it. Here are some alternatives to Thanksgiving to try this year:

Food

Let’s start with presumably everyone’s favorite tradition: food. How much time do we spend—or waste—on preparing the typical Thanksgiving meal? Turkey, mashed potatoes, casseroles, biscuits, stuffing, gravy, pies, etc. It’s overwhelming just to think about the preparation that goes into all this food. And in reality, how tasteful is all this food? There’s only so much you can do with a turkey! So, this holiday season, take it upon yourselves to implement new foods into your menu. This may be an “American” holiday, but adding international foods will undoubtedly add some flavor to your taste buds this Thanksgiving. Seriously, how long do your guests talk about how flavorful the turkey or mashed potatoes were? Mix up the cuisine this year, and people will be talking about it for weeks to come. Not ready to implement completely different foods this Thanksgiving? At least spice up your otherwise conventional meal. Idea: Jamaican-Spiced Turkey.

People

Thanksgiving has long been a time for large family gatherings. For many, this is the only time extensions of the family see each other. But not everyone has a large extended family. And for even more people, the holiday season is a time of dread. For a holiday that is supposed to be about being thankful, it’s amazing how much interfamilial arguing occurs. (Thanksgiving=catalyst for fights?) Just once, I’m sure we’d all love to go an entire family gathering without talk of politics. Alternative: spend your Thanksgiving with people you actually like and care for. If this means spending the holiday with your family, perfect! If it means spending the holiday with your chosen family of friends, neighbors, etc.? Perfect! Many of us in college already do this by having an annual “friendsgiving.” Save yourself the dread and enjoy yourself this holiday. Spend the holiday with those you love, family or not. You’ll thank yourself later.

Activity

After the traditions of eating our ever-so monotonous foods and arguing our hearts out, what better way to spend the rest of the evening than to let tryptophan have its reign and crash on the couch! Alternative to after-dinner naps: get moving! Should you implement some of these alternatives into your holiday, at this point you have already tried some exquisite cuisine and spent the day with people you actually like. Why not keep the enjoyment going and get outside. Play a friendly sports game or go for a walk. You’ll be spending more quality time with the ones you love, and your bodies will thank you, too.

Traditions are all-too-often built on repetition, rather than value. As long as you’re spending time with those you love, why not spend your holiday where you all actually want to be? As an alternative to spending Thanksgiving in the same house every single year, consider taking a trip. Think about how refreshing it would be to spend your Thanksgiving in a tropical getaway. Spend this time with people you love in a new place. Idea: if you’re spending the holiday season on a budget, consider combining all the holidays into one getaway. Maybe you travel internationally as a combined Thanksgiving and Christmas present, or perhaps you travel domestically to explore some new parts of the United States. Either way, if you spend the holiday vacationing somewhere without the distractions and dread, you’ll probably be more thankful and recognize the many things for which we have to be grateful—isn’t that what this holiday’s all about?

Spending

And finally, many people view Thanksgiving as the gateway to Christmas. Naturally, they take advantage of the many Black Friday (more like Black Thursday?) deals. This year, don’t take part in the madness of shopping. Alternative: volunteer/give back. The holiday season is the perfect time to stop worrying about ourselves, and start thinking of others. Maybe this means working in a shelter on Thanksgiving. Or, if you can’t resist the urge to shop on Black Friday, put your mad money to work by shopping for others. Consider buying toys for children in need or clothes for people experiencing homelessness. Either way, you will be doing good for others, and you’ll recognize more clearly what you have to be thankful for.

This Thanksgiving, mix it up. Whether you’re literally mixing up a new cocktail to accompany your cuisine or mixing it up by taking a family vacation, you’ll be thankful that you didn’t do the same, boring thing. How about you? Do you and your family have any atypical Thanksgiving traditions?

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