The holiday of Thanksgiving is one that most Americans look forward to and wholeheartedly embrace, but for some newly arrived students in the community, the sentiment may be different. Originally designated to celebrate blessings of the past year, and modeled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the colonists, it is now recognized as a day of indulgence and family unity. This past week, I interviewed some of our English-Language-Learners and asked them about their unique perspectives on Thanksgiving.
Silemny Acosta Garcia, a 17 year-old senior, described her family’s Dominican twist on an American tradition with vivid imagery. While traditional American Thanksgiving food consists of turkey, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, Silemny’s family enjoys traditional Dominican food, “We eat pernil, moro de gandules, pollo horneado, ensalada de papa, pastel de plátano maduro and pastel en hoja. Before we eat together, we pray, and bless the food we are about to enjoy. We listen to music, play dominoes, watch baseball games or DJ Dioni on TV. Of course, there are lots of kids running everywhere and tons of noise,” said Silmeny. A fellow senior, also of Dominican descent, Sherlin Quezada Gomez, has similar Thanksgiving traditions. For Sherlin, Thanksgiving is a day of family games and traditional Dominican fare. “For us it’s lasagna, appetizers and pastelitos. We play dominoes and usually bet on games so it gets real competitive. I like to get in on it too and make money. There are kids running around the whole time yelling. Adults arguing over domino bets, while music is playing the whole time.” Sherlin’s personal favorite dish is Dominican sweet plantain lasagna, which consists of plantains, beef, lasagna pasta, cheese, and lots of seasoning.
Although Thanksgiving is viewed as the quintessential American holiday, for many it is simply another day. Yoel Palate, a 16 year-old junior from Ecuador, says that he spent his first Thanksgiving in the United States working. “I have to work all day so I won’t be home most of the day. When I will be home, I will probably be eating and sleeping”. Senior Ayesha Mehak, raised in Pakistan, does not consider Thanksgiving to be a day of celebration, “It’s just another day for my family. It’s the same as a Saturday or Sunday. We don’t do anything different on that day or eat anything special, just our traditional foods.” A senior student from Guatemala, Abel Perez Mendez explained how his family has adopted some of the traditional American dishes like turkey, although he said he would “prefer chicken”. His family gets together and eats “tamales and soup and plays soccer.”
Despite whatever foods you eat, games you play, music or type of sporting events you watch, the one commonality is that Thanksgiving is a day to appreciate the blessings bestowed upon you.
