Unique Ways to Celebrate Thanksgiving this Holiday Season
We can all pretty much agree that 2020 did not look like what we imagined it to be when we started celebrating the new year in 2019. Everything was turned upside down and we were forced to look at things through a fresh lens and find a way to go about our lives in a new and foreign way. Now that the holidays are upon us, we all feel a need for a little normalcy right about now, but with the cases of Corona Virus growing every day, we still need to find safe ways to take care of each other during this season of gathering and giving. Thankfully the unwavering human spirit knows how to remain hopeful and find new ways to celebrate each other. This year let’s embrace the arrival of new traditions while creating exciting memories with the ones we love, all the while keeping them and ourselves safe.
The CDC has come out with guidelines on what are low to high risk activities this holiday season and what we need to do to remain in the low risk categories. Some of the ways you can celebrate in a low risk environment is to create a small and special gathering with just your immediate family in your household. This is your chance to create new traditions by finding ways to become closer as a family whether that includes new games everyone can partake in, crafts to show off creativity or learning to cook a new dish that excites everyone’s taste buds. You can also huddle by the T.V. and watch the Macy’s Day Parade or a cozy movie while drinking your favorite hot cocoa. If you want to enjoy some fresh air, the CDC has also noted that spending time indoors can pose a higher risk than being outdoors with your family or close friends in your community. Just remember, the smaller the gathering the better and if the weather permits, find a way to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner outside with throw pillows and blankets or fill your backyard with fun games like badminton and croquet. You can also start a game of flag football or create a fun scavenger hunt for everyone to enjoy. There’s also the option of taking the day away from home by preparing a picnic and going on a hike or going to a pumpkin patch where safety precautions are taken seriously but there’s still room for a fun and festive time.
Another way you can celebrate Thanksgiving with family and friends and not put anyone in any risk is to go virtual. Invite your family or friends for a Skype or Zoom date at the table or find a way to host a Friendsgiving by meeting your closest friends for a virtual dinner night with your favorite thanksgiving food and drink. We are so lucky we live in a time where we can connect with the humans we love so easily, and you can do that this holiday season by setting a time and date to enjoy a delicious menu and some good memories through your computer screen.
Many people like to give back during this season and the best way you can do that is to find a way to volunteer and reach the people out there who need it most. There are many safe ways you can volunteer this year including participating in Meals on Wheels or going virtual and taking part in multiple virtual volunteer opportunities like StoriiTime or Be My Eyes, among many others. Retailmenot.com and Goodhousekeeping.com have great resource pages on what you can do to help someone in need this holiday season, and the best part of it, you can do it all from the comfort of your own home.
This year let’s find new ways to connect and to create meaningful experiences with our loved ones. Thankfully, we have so many new opportunities this Thanksgiving to take the world we live in and make the most out of it and the best way we can do that is to appreciate all that’s around us and know that the most important thing is gratitude and treating each other with love and kindness during these hard times.
Stay safe everyone and have a beautiful Thanksgiving Holiday.
