By Ellie Seta
<[email protected]>

Gathered around her dining room table, sophomore Donna Chesnova and her family sit down to a typical Thanksgiving feast. However, the items included on their menu are not so typical. Instead of the usual turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, Chesnova eats an array of Russian cuisine such as, shish kabobs, meatballs, potatoes, bread and multiple types of salads. For most students here, Thanksgiving is a time of three elements: food, football and shopping. But for Chesnova, Thanksgiving is just another opportunity to spend time with her family and eat a home cooked feast.

According to Scripps Howard News Service and Ohio University, one out of every eight people are planning a non-traditional Thanksgiving this year. Chesnova, who is originally from the Ukraine and moved to the United States when she was three years old, said that although she does celebrate Thanksgiving, there are some differences that separate her Thanksgiving from the average American’s Thanksgiving.
“Our Thanksgiving is not like a huge family reunion,” Chesnova said. “It is just my (immediate) family plus my aunt and uncle.”

Chesnova said the main difference between her Thanksgiving and the average American’s Thanksgiving is what is served. She said that she remembers the first time she learned about Thanksgiving and the meaning and customs behind it.
“In preschool we learned about Thanksgiving one day, and that day I went home and told my mom that we needed to buy a turkey,” Chesnova said. “But instead of American food we have Russian food.”
Chesnova said although they eat mostly Russian food at Thanksgiving, they still eat turkey as their main dish. In addition to the kabobs, meatballs and other items, for dessert she said that her family usually drinks coffee and tea and eats Russian chocolates.
German teacher Angelika Becker, who is originally from Hüttenbach, Germany, said that she too celebrates Thanksgiving in a different way.

“We have created our own family traditions,” Becker said. “We eat turkey and stuffing, but then we add Rotkohl (red cabbage) and Knödel (potato dumplings), which are both German dishes, and a German-style cucumber salad. For dessert we have pies, like you are supposed to have.”
Also like Chesnova, Becker said that she does not participate in some of the American traditions that go along with the Thanksgiving holiday.
“I don’t watch football and I don’t go shopping the day after,” Becker said. “They are just things I don’t associate with Thanksgiving.”

Sophomore Shokhi Goel, who moved from India to the United States five years ago, said her Thanksgiving is quite different than the average American’s Thanksgiving.

“(My Thanksgiving) is more of a family get together,” Goel said. “It is the only time when my whole family can get together.”
But also like Becker and Chesnova, Goel said that she eats novelty Indian food at her meal. She said her favorite dish is a dessert made of balls of dough with creamy filling inside; which she said is a traditional Indian dessert.
Chesnova said that although Thanksgiving is an American holiday, there is a similar holiday Ukrainians celebrate. She said that during this holiday everyone makes food and gives it to their godparents and the purpose is to let them know how much they are appreciated. But unlike in the United States, Chesnova said that the first toast is for the holiday that they are celebrating, and the rest of the holiday is just about eating.
Becker also said that in Germany there is a German Thanksgiving called Erntedankefest. She said that this holiday is celebrated the first Sunday of October. The purpose of this holiday is to give thanks for the new harvest. This holiday is actually very similar to the American Thanksgiving. Becker said that everyone puts together a basket of fruit, bread, flowers and  vegetables, and then takes them to the church to be blessed. The blessed food then becomes the meal for the day.
“Some towns have parades and floats, but they all have to do with bringing in the harvest,” Becker said.
But still Becker said that she loves to celebrate the American Thanksgiving.“(Thanksgiving) is a wonderful holiday that my family loves, especially since we created our own traditions around it,” Becker said.

Chesnova said that although her Thanksgiving celebration is a lot about food, it also brings about much more than that.

“I am just thankful for being able to live in this country,” Chesnova said. “It is filled with so many opportunities.”