It’s time to kick off the holiday season of 2002. Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the season and New Year’s Day draws the holiday season to a close for most individuals.
“Turkey Day” can be a wonderful time where families gather together around a traditionally large meal which often includes turkey, dressing and all the trimmings. At the same time, this day can be rather stressful for many individuals, especially those who don’t take the time and effort to plan ahead. Following are some suggestions for starting the holiday season:
• Start ahead of time and set some goals. If you are planning to host a large family gathering develop a game plan that will allow you to enjoy the festivities and not do all of the work yourself. Are you going to provide the home, food, entertainment and cleanup afterwards? Perhaps you should seek help from other attendees. Ask guests to bring some of the food. Many pastries, casseroles, and other Thanksgiving dinner items can be brought ready to put in the oven or the refrigerator.
• Decide beforehand whether you want to let the Thanksgiving Day dinner mark the beginning of the “battle of the bulge” for you. This meal often marks the beginning of demolished self-discipline and will-power for the next six weeks resulting in weight gain, lowered self esteem and even depression. When possible, provide a wide variety of foods at the Thanksgiving Day meal so that those individuals who chose to watch their weight can do so.
• If rocky relationships exist between some family members, seat them between two or more conversationalists. A peaceful meal is more likely to occur if you seat these individuals on the same side of the table with friendly forces between them to keep the peace.
• Assign K.P. duties to other family members before the meal takes place. Making yourself responsible for clean up duty after providing the home and much of the food is unfair and not necessary in most cases. Kick off your shoes and have an extra cup of coffee while some of your guests clear the table and clean up the dishes.
Make Thanksgiving a time to count your blessings and share in fellowship that will be remembered in a positive manner in the future. Start the holiday season right and seize the opportunity to strengthen ties with friends and family.
Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 2002
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I’m an experienced Clinical Practitioner, Administrator, Professional Writer, and Lecturer.
