At the end of Thanksgiving each year, my family sits down to make Christmas wish lists for the families of Camp Azul, a migrant housing community near my hometown. We purchase gifts on their wish lists and deliver them to the migrant camp. This has allowed for us to form a constructed kinship network with these families because they look forward to seeing us each year and are extremely grateful. Although the kinship we have with these families is not related to us by blood, nor do we know them each by name, we’ve adopted this tradition in order for them to experience a holiday that is so important to my culture.

Ana, Lara. “Kinship.” Class lecture, Anthropology 161: World Cultures, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, November 1, 2017.

I celebrate Thanksgiving with my mom’s side of the family and at each Thanksgiving all our family members look forward to the delicious desserts my dad makes. My mother knew she married an amazing cook and with Thanksgiving playing such a big role in my culture, having this holiday to bond over the food that’s being placed in front of me reminds me to be grateful. My parent’s share a companionate marriage, based on love and trust. Seeing how my mom’s side of the family has welcomed my father into their family is something that I strive for in a marriage.

Ana, Lara. “Kinship.” Class lecture, Anthropology 161: World Cultures, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, November 1, 2017.

The kinship that my aunt (my mother’s sister) and I share is especially important to me, in the fact that she acts like my second mother. The kinship group my aunt comes from is descent, in the fact that she is a blood relative of mine. Thanksgiving is a holiday that brings my whole entire family together and through celebrating this holiday, it allows my family members and I to spend quality time with one another which is something that plays a key role in American culture.

Ana, Lara. “Kinship.” Class lecture, Anthropology 161: World Cultures, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, November 1, 2017.

The kinship I have with my younger cousins is especially important to me because we’re able to create a special bond and I can provide them with wisdom that I have learned growing up. At their age, they have yet to be exposed to many of society’s culture norms, such as enculturation, what’s considered normal and gender behavior. Their ability to act freely without being influenced by society is something I value and pushes me to ensure that my relationships with them remain strong so they’re are not shaped by society in the wrong way.

Ana, Lara. “Sex and Gender.” Class lecture, Anthropology 161: World Cultures, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, November 1, 2017.

After a satisfying Thanksgiving meal, my older brother Jacob fell asleep on the couch. The kinship that I share with him is particularly important to me in the fact that as we’ve both grown up, it has allowed us to see past our differences and get along without arguing. Thanksgiving is a time in our culture where we spend time with family and express our gratitude for what we have in this life. Despite our anger for each other at times, at the end of the day I can’t help but be grateful for the relationships I share with my siblings.

Kenneth J. Guest, Essentials of Cultural Anthropology (New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016), Page 237.

My grandparents met when they were teenagers and married each other in their 20’s. They both broke off from their nuclear families to construct a family of procreation in which they had six children, the sixth being my mother. By watching the two of them interact, I’m able to see the love they share. My grandfather still offers his help to my grandmother when helping her stand up and gently kisses her on the hand. The way they raised my mother and her siblings in celebrating Thanksgiving as a family has carried on in to the way we celebrate it now.

Kenneth J. Guest, Essentials of Cultural Anthropology (New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016), Page 255.

A big part of Thanksgiving dinner is indulging in the assortment of foods that are made for Thanksgiving dinner. Traditional foods include turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy. These types of food play a large role in the culture of my family’s Thanksgiving in that the absence of these foods would be out of the ordinary. Each family in my kinship group brings a different dish to contribute to the meal where we all sit around the table together and enjoy the meal in front of us. Although my Thanksgiving consists of more than just my family related by blood ties, I couldn’t imagine a holiday without the family we’ve “adopted,” our family of choice.

Kenneth J. Guest, Essentials of Cultural Anthropology (New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016), Page 256.

Once we’ve prayed and grace has been said, we take our plates and make a line behind the table of arranged food. We have a variety of food set out on the table, as each family is in charge of bringing a dish to contribute to the meal. It’s very common in American culture to eat turkey at Thanksgiving, along with side dishes like mashed potatoes, gravy and stuffing. In a traditional model of kinship, the father worked while the mother stayed home and cooked. In my family, everyone has a role in making the food for our Thanksgiving meal.

Kenneth J. Guest, Essentials of Cultural Anthropology (New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016), Page 255.

Saying Grace before we sit down before our meal is a tradition that I first practiced in my nuclear family; my mother, father and three brothers. It was taught to me as a child and we continue to practice it before every meal to this day. With the whole family gathered around the table, we all take each others hands and recite a Catholic grace before sitting down to enjoy dinner. It’s at events like Thanksgiving where I become aware of the close relationship my family has with one another and how that shows through in our cultural and religious practices, such as saying grace before dinner.

Kenneth J. Guest, Essentials of Cultural Anthropology (New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016), Page 236.

Growing up Catholic, my religion has always played a role in my life, especially at holidays like Thanksgiving. With the whole family gathered around the table, my uncle leads us in The Our Father and thanks the Lord for the food that’s in front of us. The Our Father is a liturgy that falls under the the anthropologist tool of “The World.” It’s a prayer practiced by Catholics and plays a key role in our faith. After the prayer, we go around the table having each person list one thing they are thankful for. This is something that my family has done for years and it allows us to not lose sight behind the importance of this holiday and it’s significance to our culture.

Ana, Lara. “Anthropologists Tools.” Class lecture, Anthropology 161: World Cultures, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, November 1, 2017.