Post-Thanksgiving Reflections

November 27, 2009

Thanksgiving has come and gone again. My goal was to make this year’s Thanksgiving just a little greener, but I was really struggling with how to do it. I’m not sure how you would rate our green Thanksgiving, on a scale of 1 to 10, but I must say there was improvement over previous years. Here’s what we did and didn’t do.

On the greener side:

1. Purchased an organic, free-range chicken rather than a conventional turkey. How did it go over? If anyone missed the turkey they didn’t express it, and I thought the chicken and dressing was really delicious. This is a “do-again” in my book! If you remember from my earlier post, this was my grandmother’s recipe.

2. Saved, and froze all of the chicken broth from boiling the chickens to use in a recipe some other day this winter.

3. Purchased fresh sweet potatoes for the casserole, rather than canned. Using fresh ingredients didn’t seem to make much difference in flavor. (With all the butter and sugar in the recipe, who would know the difference?) Most of the other ingredients in the recipe were also organic, including the butter and the brown cane sugar. Additionally, the sugar came from Florida, which is not too bad in miles travelled to get here.

4. Decorated the table with items we already had,  plants pulled from the yard and drawn “hand turkeys” like the kids made when they were little. I’ve never really been much of a planner when it comes to entertaining, so I’m often caught performing last minute miracles. Miracle may be too strong of a word, it’s probably more like last minute surprises! I pulled a basket from the basement,  a particular favorite made from earthy sticks and moss. I purchased two small mums (which I’ll now enjoy on into the season), set them in the basket and filled in with fresh cut Nandina berries, pine cones and pine fronds from my backyard. The place settings were Depression glass water glasses, and mismatched Fiesta-ware garnered from many trips to flea markets and antique malls over the years. The table was simple, but not too shabby.

5. The kids and I played the board games Cranium and Trivial Pursuit and laughed until we hurt! (I’m using the term “kids” loosely, these kids are pretty well grown). You may not consider this eco-friendly, but I believe a large part of becoming conscious of our world is accomplished by just slowing down, living a little simpler and enjoying each other.  With full tummies, overstuffed like your favorite chair, this love and laughter  was without a doubt the very best part of the day!

Maybe, not so green:

1. We kept the fire roaring. (Gas logs.) We really didn’t need it for warmth, but the ambiance was too nice to resist. The day here was crystal clear, but blustery and cold. We felt so snuggly and cozy that I put my guilt aside about using all of that unnecessary energy, and just went with it. When my gas bill arrives, I’m sure the consequences of that cozy day will be clear.

2. Paper napkins. Yep, I bought ‘em, I used ‘em and I loved ‘em. Burgundy-colored dinner napkins were so pretty on the table. I have to say, however, that the only reason I used paper was because I don’t own cloth napkins. Cloth napkins top my Christmas wish list.

Green or not, the Thanksgiving holiday worked out just fine this year. By next year, hopefully I’ll have added composting,among other things, to my green quotient. The important thing was our little family coming together and honoring this day of gratitude. I hope you and your family also shared and enjoyed a blessed Thanksgiving Day.

Filed under: Eating Well,Inspiration,Uncategorized

Tags: Eating Well, family, green living, Lifestyle, Local Food, Seasonal Eating, Thanksgiving