Happy Thanksgiving from The Circuit staff! Instead of telling you these stories around the dinner table, we decided to write about them. Enjoy columns, opinions and stories related to the Thanksgiving holiday from our entire staff.
We are incredibly thankful for your support of The Circuit this entire semester and look forward to telling more stories in the future.
Southern Thanksgiving
By Austin Canatella
Thanksgiving is a time usually thought about being inside, sitting around the living room with your family enjoying each other’s company. The late November cold drives everyone indoors around fires and being cuddled in blankets. But where I’m from, we usually spend it outside.
I am from Bryan, Texas and my thanksgiving get togethers are not what normal thanksgivings are thought to be. The weather is more on our side here in central Texas so we like to spend it outside. Ever since I was little I remember being outside with my cousin and brother running around in shorts and a t-shirt throwing the football while waiting for the yell from my grandma, “food is ready!” We would all rush in, and get a big glass of powerade that grandma had stocked and cool off before filling our stomachs with turkey and her famous mashed potatoes.
Now that we’ve gotten a little older we don’t run around as much, but we enjoy being with our relatives a little more. We all gather together on the patio and enjoy the good weather while having the blessing of being with family on this special holiday. The weather is a blessing that we are just used to, so this Thanksgiving be thankful for the little things that you sometimes tend to forget.
Pilgrim Run
By: McKenna Elder
There are many traditions that families have for Thanksgiving such as playing a game of football or watching the Thanksgiving day parade on tv. Those are spectacular, but I think my family’s tradition of doing a Thanksgiving day 5K will always be my favorite!
When I told this to one of my friends he said “oh so your family is the athletic type on Thanksgiving?”, and I said “not at all!” The tradition of my family doing the Pilgrim Run started six years ago, and ever since then, on Thanksgiving morning my family wakes up, puts on multiple layers of clothes for the brisk weather we are about to endure and we make our way to the start of the race.
While most participants do the Pilgrim Run either to win the race or get early morning exercise to prepare themselves for all the food they are going to eat later on, my family is the opposite. My family does not run. We nonchalantly walk…the entire 5K!
As my family walks along the path breathing in the crisp cool air as our fingers start to go numb, we get passed by everyone, and when I say everyone I mean everyone…we came in dead last two years ago! However, no matter what, we still always make sure someone gets a picture of us acting like we are running across the finish line!
Even though my family has no intention of winning or getting exercise, we still love to go and enjoy each other’s company. As we all sit around the table for Thanksgiving dinner getting ready to eat the steamy delicious food, someone will always say something along the lines of, “I can’t wait to eat all this food, I really worked up an appetite this morning doing the 5K”, and then everyone laughs because we all know we don’t deserve the right to say that when we walked the entire thing!
Thanksgiving is such a special holiday and it is a blessing to be able to spend it with my family in the best way that we can imagine, and that is by starting our day with The Pilgrim Run!
Take a Walk
By Will Russum
A Thanksgiving tradition that my family does every year is go on a stroll around the neighborhood as a whole group.
There’s a tiny little pond in our neighborhood and many paths around where most of the residents do their daily activities. There are a couple docks by the lake where people go fishing and a tiny ramp where teenagers can show off their biking skills.
We’ve always gone on walks on Thanksgiving because it is great way to spend quality family time together outside the house. My siblings and I were not huge fans of this tradition because we thought it was super lame and there’s nothing interesting.
As I’ve grown up, I’ve finally come to understand why my parents decided to make this a tradition.
It’s a great way to get some exercise after the big meal. My siblings and I are usually glued to our electronics throughout most of the day and don’t get the opportunity to talk to one another.
99 Walks believes walking after dinner allows families to connect better and have meaningful connections towards one another. My family doesn’t have much opportunity to spend quality time together. I feel like I connect better with my siblings on walk rather than us playing on electronic devices.
It’s a great way to enjoy the beauty of nature. I live along the foothills where there’s a good amount of open land and lots trails that people have the capability to go on hikes and walks. Enjoying a sunset over the foothills is a scene that many people from Colorado always look forward to.
Colorado has over 300 sunny days a year, November isn’t the coldest time of year from where I come. Being able to enjoy nice weather during this time of year is a blessing.
We’ve brought our six year only black lab Cooper with us the last couple years to keep us entertained. He always tries to go after squirrels and rabbits whenever he sees them.
Being able to take walks with my family on Thanksgiving has allowed us to bond together better than, even though my siblings and I fight all the time.
Even in the midst of a pandemic where people are socially distancing, my family will still take a stroll around the neighborhood this year. It’ll be something that we do every Thanksgiving whenever all the Russum’s are in town.
