Recalling the Thanksgivings I have known

PRIME November 2012 By Jane D. O'Donoghue Special to PRIME The holiday has always meant family. When I was young, the traditional feast was prepared by my mother, who roasted a turkey large enough for seven and any relatives who might be joining us. We children helped by stuffing celery stalks with cream cheese and cutting radishes in fancy shapes. Olives and pickles in special dishes helped create a colorful table. We set out the best dishes, which were the carnival glass type in an iridescent orange, collected from dish night at the movies. We also made decorations to enhance the festivity. Mom made lots of stuffing, baked a hubbard squash, prepared turnips, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and a large pan of gravy. Homemade cranberry sauce was a must. The pies were traditionally apple, squash, and mince. During World War II, when my mother worked at the Springfield Armory, the usual holiday was suspended as everyone working for the war effort reported for duty. My grandmother found a goose for our dinner rather than the usual turkey, which was scarce. That also was the year my three younger sisters were assigned the task of bringing extra plates from our house. They pretended they were high stepping, "Oer the white and wintry snow," as they were going to Gramma's house about a half mile away. In silly fits of laughter, they dropped the plates, breaking a few, and running home to get replacements. Over the years, the venue changed often, but never without family and friends in attendance. In 1954, two days before my wedding, my mother opted for a restaurant holiday dinner. We dined family style at the Log Cabin in Holyoke. The downside was there were no leftovers for turkey sandwiches, or pie for breakfast the next day. Tom and I enjoyed the holiday with the grandparents, or invited them to our home. If no one was eating with us, our children always felt we should go out and find someone who was alone – hard to do at the last minute. When the group was large, the card table was pressed into service and that was the children's. Often there was a high chair pulled up to be included, and the bench from the picnic table was set in place for extra seating. My children also helped by doing the tradition of celery, radish and table setting. Our custom was to bring a pie or something to share when invited. A blizzard on the big day one year kept many at home who would be dining elsewhere. Luckily, we were hosting that year and had a complete dinner ready, except for dessert. My mother planned on joining my sister Mary's family in Chicopee. Mary had the turkey dinner, and Betty's family, destined for our home, dined on hotdogs and lots of pie. Everyone stayed in their own place and my mother was escorted to our house from next door, with her pies that were slated for Chicopee. Another year, my sister Mary invited a crowd to her home. She set up card tables like a restaurant. That time we had 14 different types of pie to select from. Our daughter Liz extended an invitation to their new home and ended up with 30 people for dessert. Tom, our son the chef, cooked dinner in his "closed for the season" coffee shop in Rockport. Our niece Marian requested our presence at their Upstate New York home. The year we celebrated the day at Cape Cod was another adventure. Once, we rented a local club where we cooked the dinner. Others joined us and we shared the traditional dishes of others and lots of different pies. We had games for the young ones to meet new cousins from out of town, keeping them busy while we prepared the food. When our son Tim moved to Seattle, he found a restaurant on the Olympic Peninsula overlooking the Pacific Ocean. They displayed an abundance of foods of the region that included whole salmons. He enjoyed that so much he invited us to join him the following year. We drove from Seattle with a stop at the Rain Forest. That alone was worth the trip. When we reached our destination, it was raining so hard that if the ocean was there, it was not evident. Inside we found a lovely area decorated with holiday trimmings, but no buffet as last year. When Tim inquired, they said it wasn't so popular so they returned to their usual Thanksgiving offering. They listed a choice of turkey or ham. Tim was so disappointed. They didn't even have pumpkin pie. We were thankful for the gift of a memorable day. But the next day, we bought a frozen pumpkin pie and baked it to complete the celebration. Once, when our children had left home for marriage, were away at school, were scheduled to work that day, or had invitations to other places, we were stunned to find that the two of us would be alone for the holiday. When friends learned of this, we were asked to join them; otherwise, I'm sure we would have found a restaurant where other folks would be around. Nowadays, our daughter Mary Jane and her husband Michael host the annual Thanksgiving feast at their home. They usually seat at least a dozen or more for the happiest of family gatherings. Their children now do the celery, radish and table setting. We are forever thankful for all our blessings of family, friends and country. Jane D. O'Donoghue is a Hungry Hill native and retired school librarian. A regular contributor to PRIME, her writing has appeared in local and regional publications.