Thanksgiving: part II of IV

The exact moment escapes me, but at some point in the fall of our freshman year, my dorm buddies and I decided we wanted to cook our own Thanksgiving dinner. One member of the group had never had turkey, and this was decried as a tragedy; someone volunteered to do the turkey, another pies, another yams, and a tradition was born.

That first year, Twainsgiving was cooked in a cramped, questionable dorm kitchen, with all ingredients purchased the night before (so as to fit within our mini-fridges and the one full-size cooler available). Gloria, as the bird was christened, was glorious, as were the assorted sides, desserts, and rolls (even if we did have a roll fight in the lounge once we had eaten our fill). The entire evening was proclaimed a great success, and nearly everything was eaten.

Fast forward three years. Some things have changed about Twainsgiving--significant others have rotated in and out of the lineup, the location has changed from dorm to apartment, those partaking in the feast have ostensibly become more grown-up--but many things are just the same. There's still the mad rush at the very beginning and very end of prep ("Is the turkey cooking in time?...Is everything finished at the right time? Where are the plates?"). There's still a lot of catching-up and laughter. There's still the same dishes to look forward to: C.'s pound-of-butter turkey, J. or E.'s pies, my candied yams. And there's still largely the same group of friends from three years ago meeting and eating.

Sitting around tonight, it was impossible to think of this Twainsgiving in isolation: the three previous years lined up behind it, like movement in a photograph. We seem a little more sure of ourselves, a little more grounded--very different from the wide-eyed novices we were. We may still be wide-eyed novices in a lot of ways, but we have learned volumes about who we are, and what living with ourselves is like. The joking and teasing that goes along with any family dinner was there, but worn in and very comfortable: Yes, this is who I am, my attitude seemed to be. And sometimes I do some funny things! But within and around and behind the laughter and food, there was a strong core of support and love, as there can only be in a group that has grown up together.

Next year may be the first year without this particular gathering, as we travel to different corners of the country and the world, taking the next steps into our lives on our own. I hope not; I hope we make the effort to celebrate together in some way for years to come. No matter what happens to Twainsgiving, though, it has been a wonderful celebration for the past four years, and a memory that will tie all of us together no matter how far apart we drift.