Thanksgiving- Anya Slepyan

My parents met Mark Field and Debbie Schneir when they were in graduate school at the University of Michigan, studying Russian History.  Of all of my parents' friends grad school, Mark and Debbie and their children, Lily and Jacob, are some of my favorites. Lily and Jacob incidentally are only weeks away in age from my sister, Mara, and me (Lily is nineteen and Jacob is sixteen).  But the similarities don't end there. Like Mara, Lily is outgoing and relatively social. Jacob and I are both more reserved and sarcastic, with certain misanthropic tendencies. The four of us have similar interests, including the same books, movies, and music, and most importantly, a deep love for Lord of the Rings. I always find it amazing that we can be so similar even though we're from completely different families, but I guess in a way it makes sense. Our parents were such good friends because of their shared interests and experiences, which they have passed on to us.

For the past few years, our family has visited the Field-Schneirs in Ann Arbor for thanksgiving. Even though we see Lily and Jacob once a year at most, we are so similar that we are immediately able to reacquaint ourselves. Of course, we have standard thanksgiving traditions (eating, falling into a food coma, repeat). But we also have a few unique traditions between both of our families, as well as the four of us. Every thanksgiving we gather in the living room at 12:00 when the local music station plays Arlo Guthrie's eighteen-minute long folk classic, Alice's Restaurant. Lily, Jacob, Mara, and I are also responsible for setting the table, and add a little flare by competitively folding napkins to suit the festivities. Finally, in the midst of our post-dinner food coma, we settle down to watch at least two movies of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

This year I'm a little upset because we weren't able to go to Michigan for Thanksgiving. But we already have plans to do it again next year, which I am most definitely looking forward to.