Well, it’s that time of year again. After a rigorous three weeks of midterms, everyone packs up and heads home for the amazingly stressful and chaotic day we call Thanksgiving. Now luckily, my journey home to New York City is an easy one. However, the Big Apple is not the calmest place to be during the holiday season. Don’t get me wrong, I love the city. But after spending months at Vassar’s pristine and beautiful campus, returning to see thousands of people flooding streets that are littered with garbage does not bring out inner peace.
However, chaos is something that I am very used to. Growing up in a family of five in a small New York City apartment AND sharing a room with my twin brother for 15 years prepared me for anything that comes my way. Many of my friends are surprised when I tell them I was ecstatic to find out I was in a triple my freshman year. My favorite place to study is during peak hours in the Deece. I even prefer sitting at the confusingly-shaped huge tables instead of isolating myself in a booth (not that they are ever available anyways).
So this year, I decided to remind myself that the only way I can possibly ever focus is in a chaotic environment. Maybe it is because I grew up in a hectic city. Maybe it is undiagnosed ADHD. There is no way we will ever know.
Now, cooking an entire Thanksgiving dinner in a kitchen smaller than a Jewett single is not an easy task. Especially when said kitchen is filled with five people with very different opinions on how things should be done. However, there is a saying in my family: If you haven’t had a screaming fight with every member of your family and secretly altered at least one of the dishes to your liking, did Thanksgiving even really happen?
After a long day of cooking, watching the various Thanksgiving programs and everyone taking their personal “walk” in order to avoid another spat, it’s time to eat, which takes no longer than 10 minutes. As we all gather around the table to eat a drier, worse version of chicken that takes 10 times longer to cook, it all seems kinda sort of worth it.
Then the day comes to a close. Another year and another hectic semi-success.