Giving...thanks?

I'll be going to a couple different gatherings throughout the day between my folks and my in-laws but here what we're looking at:

For breakfast, a healthy dose of piousness and with some sides of ignorance to that one time Papa used a racial slur. That said, there's usually some sweet treats that highlight the importance of graceful aging and self-investment.

Lunch is kind of a mixture. The step-aunts and uncles tend to bring some poorly-seasoned sentiments. Their children will bring little, but leave with heaping plates. Hubby and I will probably bring some pre-packaged sensibilities and claim they're homemade just to ruffle Step-nana's country fluffed feathers. The original grandkids occasionally stir a pot of sweet and sour puckish delights. Everyone brings their own variation of avoidance.

But as for dinner, your initial question:

With my family, there's usually a main course of repression. Plentiful sides of bitterness and denial are paired with carefully carved generational grudges dressed with meddlesome behavior and stuffed with unresolved trauma. This will likely be the heaviest meal of the day, so I'm glad that this is at the end. I try not to put too much on my plate here, but tend to have more leftovers than I want or need. My husband tries to skip this meal as he says my family are terrible chefs. I don't disagree, but it gets harder to come up with new reasons for his absence every year. Politeness only goes so far, especially when unreciprocated.

OH. You meant...like, actual food. I don't know...probably turkey and some mac and cheese? Green bean casserole, sweet potato mash. My grandma makes a pretty mean potato salad, though her taste buds died years ago so she's just winging it at this point. Might keep the salt and pepper on the table just in case.