Richard Leeming/Flickr Creative Commons
As y’all know perfectly well, Thanksgiving is one of the most heavily traveled weeks of the year here in America. A lot of folks start to feel hurried, grumpy, stressed, tired, and very unthankful that they have to be the ones on the road going to visit those family members they feel they could do without. We’ve all been there at least once on Thanksgiving. I think as an RVer I have a way to avoid those feelings of obligation and stress. It’s definitely an idea that may cause concern to those of you who prefer to celebrate the holiday in a very traditional manner, but have faith that my idea holds true to the underlying concept of the holiday! Here’s what I propose for next year’s Thanksgiving:
Spend the next few months giving some very careful thought to where you and your family would like to ideally be for next Thanksgiving…and I mean get downright SPECIFIC! Do you want to be by the water, in the pines, or perhaps in a place with no burn bans so a campfire is an option, maybe surrounded by fall foliage, or perhaps down by a beach where it’s still warm and a little humid? Pick out the ideal spot for yourself and your family. Then reserve your spot way early! Now you have a location that the family will look forward to visiting instead of that same old kitchen table or den where that same old football game is running in the background and everybody’s all dressed up and bored to tears.
Now that you have the location sorted out, start asking what they REALLY want to eat for Thanksgiving. I have some friends that cook Tex Mex for Thanksgiving one year, and pasta the next because they understand the sentiment behind the holiday: enjoy your time with family and be THANKFUL for your time together. It doesn’t matter if you’re eating the perfect turkey or cranberry sauce, what matters is that family is together and happy for a couple days. We all know how difficult a feat that can be to pull off at times, so let’s start thinking outside the box and put family before tradition. I bet you’ll see more smiles and that’s what it’s all about!