Thanksgiving with Family
The best part of any holiday is the time we set aside to spend with family. Over the years, some of my best memories are of times spent with my cousins during the holiday season. I’ve been blessed with a large extended family, including 18 first cousins on my mother’s side. As I grow older, the relationships I have with my cousins also grow, even if the amount of time we spend together does not.
Growing up, my cousins Ryan, Ellen and Kathryn lived right around the corner from my family. Ryan and I were best friends and spent just about every minute we could hanging out, especially during the summer. Whether it was riding bikes through the neighborhood, building forts, or just exploring, there was never a boring day. Over the years as our lives got busier, the amount of time Ryan and I spent together diminished. However, the significance of that time never has.
During the most recent Thanksgiving and Christmas family celebrations, I’ve really been struck with one thought. My cousins aren’t little kids anymore, they’re all real people that are genuinely intelligent and interesting. I would be friends with them even if we weren’t related. These are the same people that I’ve spent so many hours goofing off with, but recently we all hit this point where we were able to relate to each other as adults. My cousins are now getting married and having kids of their own, going to grad school, and following their various passions in life.
It’s just been a great experience to sit around after Thanksgiving dinner and talk to my cousins about music or politics, or why they’ve chosen to go to a certain school or live in a certain city. I guess I just feel blessed to have all of these meaningful relationships with people in my family. The same can be said for my aunts and uncles. I feel like they no longer see me as a good kid, but as someone who is becoming a good man and will carry on the things my family has taught me.
My mother said something to me tonight that really struck me. We weren’t even specifically talking about our family when she said, “I hope that you and your cousins will keep having Thanksgiving dinner together, even when my brothers and sisters and I aren’t here anymore.” So do I.
So back to Ryan, the cousin and friend that I’ve been through so much with. On Thanksgiving night, he announced to our family that he and his girlfriend are now engaged. I know that even as our lives continue to change and we gain the responsibility of having our own families, the bonds I have with my cousins will only grow. I also hope that we keep our family traditions alive so that my kids can receive this same gift, and have these same kinds of relationships with their own cousins.