I’m just the teeniest bit embarrassed to admit that this is the third consecutive year I’ve served KFC for Thanksgiving dinner, and it’s all thanks to a tragic estate saga that left me too fried to touch a turkey.
You see, three years ago, my Auntie Judy passed away and I was the executor of her estate. She had been living alone with dementia for a while, and although we had tried our damnedest to help her, she refused until she finally became so physically weak that we found her on the floor unable to walk. The ambulance took her to the hospital where she would pass away within a month. By the time I sold her home on October 10th, after months of dealing with lawyers, exterminators, and countless contractors, my stress level was higher than Snoop Dog at a Bob Marley concert. I was left running on fumes.
Needless to say, I had completely forgotten about Thanksgiving until just days before. In a panic, I said to my husband, “What are we going to do about Thanksgiving dinner? I can’t bear to do the whole turkey thing, but I really want to see our family and celebrate. We have so much to be thankful for.” In his infinite and pragmatic wisdom, he suggested we order KFC.
It sounded like the craziest thing my over-achieving brain had ever heard. But it also sounded like a gift. So, I crafted a last minute text to the fam notifying them that we would be serving “mouth-watering poultry with 11 herbs and spices.” To my surprise, everyone was stoked about it. My mom brought pumpkin pies from Costco and we all feasted and laughed about how much we enjoyed our effortless Thanksgiving dinner.
To my shock, someone suggested we should do this every year! Then there was a spontaneous vote. Only one person didn’t raise their hand in favour. It was my nephew. While everyone else gaped at him as though he’d just murdered Colonel Sanders himself, he bravely declared, “I just wish we had stuffing.” Stuffing? That’s it? We can do stuffing! Which is exactly when our third sponsor Stovetop Stuffing joined the party. And that was it. A new tradition was born.
I laugh at how silly this is, but I also appreciate it SO much. It feels like all the best parts of celebrating and giving thanks with family, without all of the stress and exhaustion that is used to entail. It’s proof that sometimes, the best traditions are the easiest ones. I’m curious, what quirky traditions does your family have?
