Thanksgivings are meant to be spent in the kitchen, according to my childhood memories. When I was just old enough to read, my mom handed me one of her favorite junior auxiliary cookbooks. By memory, she would blurt out a page number for which recipe to turn to next.
As I tried not to pull out the delicate spiral-bound pages that were dusted with flour and wilted from droplets of milk, I read through what seemed like hieroglyphics, fascinated at each new scribbled note I would find every time.
Stumbling upon notes such as “this needs a dash more of salt” or “add in an extra eighth cup of sugar,” I longed to read each one, as if they were a fulcrum that unlocked the secret of cooking.
Although the recipes did not contain the secret I longed for, the cookbooks are memorabilias of my past that connect me with my mom, sisters and my memories of Thanksgivings spent preparing our traditional meal with decades-old recipes.
For Abby Bone, a freshman nursing major, food also connects her with special memories of Thanksgivings spent with her family. Yet, for Bone, the majority of these memories did not take place in America. Instead, they are centered in Thailand.
“I don’t know if I really have a place I can truly call home,” said Bone. “I guess you would say that Thailand is where I am from, but my real home is wherever I’m with my family.”
Throughout Bone’s life, she has only spent two Thanksgivings in the states.
Though in Thailand, Bone said that her family still celebrates the holiday with American food. She said that there was a long table in her family’s home in Thailand that stretched across the room and was filled with a traditional American Thanksgiving feast.
She and her family enjoyed things like stuffing, sweet potato casserole and pumpkin pie. She assured me that her favorite was definitely the sweet potato casserole.
Some Thanksgivings were spent with her family’s American missionary friends. She recalls getting together to celebrate and her friends having a big potluck for the holiday.
“As far as for how we celebrate Thanksgiving in Thailand, we take the idea of gathering together with your community and family and use it to minister to people from other countries,” said Bone. “We don’t necessarily use the story of the Mayflower, but we instead use the aspect of community that is tied in with Thanksgiving. We connect with others by giving them a place for community when they might not otherwise have it on a day that is special for us.”
Bone mentioned that as a yearly tradition during the holidays, her mom would put out faux yellow, orange and red leaves because Thailand’s climate does not allow the leaves to change colors like in America. This helps the family connect with the American traditions and culture, despite being on another continent.
Although traditions like these are very important, Bone also loves unique memories she experienced.
“My favorite memory of Thanksgiving was at our church a few years ago,” said Bone. “We celebrated with other missionary families but we also invited other people in the community. There were 20-30 different countries represented, and they were asked to bring any type of food. There was everything from Korean kimchi to American fried chicken to Indian curry to green bean casserole. It was a diverse meal, but it brought everyone and their culture together.”
Whether it be through food or through words, Bone sees holidays as opportunities to connect with people and share the gospel.
“Most holidays are typically centered around evangelism opportunities,” said Bone. “We spend Thanksgiving as a celebration of thankfulness and community. Well, I guess you could say that by doing that, it is showing people the gospel after all.”
