Taking a Breather This Thanksgiving

I caught a glimpse of a Martha Stewart Thanksgiving Special the other day and she was drilling (yes, drilling…) holes in acorn squashes to make the “perfect holiday center piece.” She was actually having trouble holding those suckers down while trying to make it look “So Easy!”

I just can’t picture myself trying to DRILL a hole in the center of a squash so that I could have the “perfect” holiday centerpiece this Thanksgiving. Whatever happened to simply putting some candle holders out in the center of the table and hoping your 10-year old niece doesn’t knock them over reaching for the gravy?

The Holidays Are Here … Again

Yes, folks, the holidays are here … again. Which of course means more running around, more shopping, more eating, more stress, more debt … more of everything we don’t need. When you think about it, the Holidays should be a time when we strip our lives down to the bare essentials: Good Food, Close Family and Fun Friends.
But as a society we don’t. We run around cooking, cleaning, bitching, buying, stressing…and now drilling?

Don’t Buy into the Hype

When you sit back and actually watch some of these shows (or even segments on the local news) you really have to remind yourself that everyone of the hosts are trying to sell you something in the wrapper of a “Perfect Holiday”--when there is no such thing.

Actually, let me take that back: The perfect holiday is not what some marketing guru on Fifth Avenue wants you to believe. It’s not serving the perfect tasting turkey in the perfectly ironed outfit with perfectly behaved children sitting around the table waiting patiently to be served.

The Perfect Thanksgiving is Possible

The perfect Thanksgiving is one where you are able to afford the turkey, put your healthy kids in a timeout because they are over-tired and one in which you are able to actually sit down for five minutes and enjoy the taste of the meal you have been planning and cooking for days.

So this Thanksgiving, try not to stress. Be mindful (and truly Thankful) for what you have, the people around you and the meal you cooked. If you can sit back and smile at the meal before you and laugh with the company around you—it has been the “Perfect” Thanksgiving.