Thanksgiving is a week away and I am not cooking for it. I don’t want to. Last year, unknowingly about six months pregnant my significant other and I did cook for just the two of us. I didn’t mind but I could’ve gone without doing it.
I do not enjoy cooking
This is not a secret. I’m not that good at it. It doesn’t bring me a lot of joy. I can follow a recipe and am competent enough to not give others food poisoning. But my love to eat far outweighs my love to cook. I don’t love involving myself in the process of cooking. I respect the art of cooking and those that partake in the action. However, I could go without it.
Thanksgiving doesn’t always have to be traditional
Growing up, Thanksgiving meant my parents and sisters spent most of the day cooking. It usually included turkey, ham, stuffing, collard greens, and Dutch Apple pie. Family would come over and we’d stuff ourselves silly. But once I moved for college, Thanksgiving didn’t always include a home-cooked meal. One year I had Chinese. Another, I went to a hotel where they served crab legs alongside their turkey at their Thanksgiving buffet. I loved it. It was not only enjoyable, but I realized there were way more people in this world who weren’t cooking either. I discovered there are plenty of options for if I didn’t want to cook and I didn’t have to feel bad about it.
No, I am not cooking for Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving doesn’t have to equate to cooking. It is a holiday originally mean to celebrate a successful harvest. For many nowadays it’s an opportunity to reflect on what you’re thankful for and spend time with love ones. I don’t need to cook to do that. I can reflect on what I’m thankful at a restaurant or while eating take-out. Cooking all day is less important than people who you choose to share food with. Choosing to have chicken tikka masala can be your tradition as much as turkey with stuffing.
If you enjoy cooking and your heart is set on cooking for Thanksgiving, you’re amazing. If you don’t enjoy cooking or just don’t feel like it, you’re just as amazing too. Do whatever you’d like and stay thankful no matter your choice.
