As I get older, I can't help thinking about the past and those things that got me to where I am today. The family has definitely gotten smaller, even with the new additions. The holidays that I remember experiencing growing up in the Bronx were very large affairs when it came to attendance. This was mostly from my father's side but there were occasions where my uncles from my mother's side were involved. Those were fun when my Uncle Harold came with his drum set.
I can still smell the turkey as it basted in my mom's oven. My brother and I were anxiously waiting to see the new balloons on television from that year's event from Herald Square. We were glued to the TV right up until Santa Claus arrived. Once the parade was over, there was still time before dinner to watch "March of the Wooden Soldiers." I don't think I ever watched that movie on any day but Thanksgiving. It never got old! Year after year, I enjoyed the adventures of Laurel and Hardy as they had to deal with Barnaby (cue music).
As I got older, sometimes friends and acquaintances joined us for this holiday meal. We always began with the turkey soup, which my mom would always include a piece of the liver in mine. She had the other piece. By the size of mine, I figured that her share was very small. As I got older, I would make the salad, which I made sure to include iceberg, spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, croutons and olives. I absolutely loved the crisp turkey skin! The stuffing, cranberry sauce and yams were looked forward to even more than the turkey. Of course, the cranberry sauce had to be out of a can.
It was a very lazy day after the meal as everyone just hung around until the pumpkin and lemon pies were served. I tried to convince some of our guests to take a walk to kind of feel better about all that we just consumed. We had many other holidays at my Italian family's home, which was another feast in itself. I consider myself very lucky to have these memories, but why does it take years later for us to realize how good these times were.