Holidays and traditions go hand-in-hand like mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing and turkey. COVID on the other hand doesn’t go with anything. Certainly not generational gatherings and family feasts.
This month’s cuisine article offers ideas to keep your family close during a season of social distancing, albeit through recipes. I’ve entertained the idea of scanning recipes, uploading images and creating a family cookbook for years. I plan to incorporate the hand-written cards I’ve collected from family (including a pot roast recipe from my Aunt Wynne who will be 101-years-old this month!) and friends through the years and ordering copies for Christmas gifts. Tip: check out Groupon for deals on photobooks.
Thanksgiving 1999 I introduced a family activity I had read about in another magazine. By Christmas of that year it became a family tradition. The activity? Pretty simple: buy (or upcycle) a book, then have each person celebrating the holiday with you make an entry in The Book. I generally start the entry by listing who is with us, as well the date (we include Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter) and the menu.
For a solid ten years there is an accounting of grandparents, siblings – home or away at school, visiting cousins, and best friends who seem like family who were in attendance. The years of turkey cupcakes (decoration not content), specialty mashed potatoes, who stirred the gravy, games that were played, shopping fliers and Black Friday plans are all recorded in The Book. Sadly, it was put away after Thanksgiving 2009 not to be written in again until this year.
What better time to reinstate a tradition? And, what fun I am having filling in the gap years! Some years are easy to remember the highlights and who was here.
Other years will be filled in after quizzing the family. There have been losses since 2009, and most recently, new additions. While COVID may not allow for our traditional group to be together this year we will visit virtually. I’ll be the one jotting down notes and comments to include for the 2020 entry.
To quote the new Jon Bon Jovi song, “When you can’t do what you do, you do what you can.”
Happy Holidays, stay safe and read on,
Kathy
