The holiday season is upon us, or, at least, the decorations in stores say it is. So in the wise words of who should be our next president, Ms. Leslie Knope, let's sit back and realize what this time is really all about.
“We need to remember what's important in life: friends, waffles, work. Or waffles, friends, work. Doesn't matter, but work is third.”
There it is, in twenty-one words, Ms. Knope sums up what we should really all be thankful for this week.
First, for all the devil’s advocates out there, I am deciding that family falls under the umbrella of friends because if you can’t say your grandma’s your friend then that’s just lame. During this time many of us are blessed to see those we don’t always get the pleasure of seeing. For some, it's cousins that come in from out of town. For others, it’s hometown friends that you haven’t seen since August. Whatever the case, you get to breathe the same air as someone that you've been missing for the past few months, or longer, and who doesn’t love reunions?
Ranking as number two of importance in life: waffles, a.k.a. food. As stated above, it can be argued that waffles sometimes come before friends/family and to that I’m sure we can all agree. We’ve all had our feelings hurt by people before, but never by potatoes. Or turkey. Or pie. Or stuffing. Or a second helping of potatoes. Or more pie.
Our third priority is that of work, or in most of our cases, school. Personally, I would probably put other things before work such as sleeping and luckily others do too. Yes, school and work is important and for those that are blessed enough to have either in their lives should express gratitude, but at the same time, Thanksgiving = break. And break = your own bed. Which if you then subtract paying to do laundry, Thanksgiving break = happiness. So really, it’s not work that is necessarily important, but rather the absence of it during this time dedicated to friends and food.
Although her statement is rather short, Leslie Knope understands the true meaning behind the ancient holiday. It isn’t about waiting in line for Black Friday sales, or worrying about getting the perfect Instagram shot to show that you don’t live in a hole and did, in fact, eat Thanksgiving dinner, but rather reminiscing on the simple things in life: friends and waffles, while you get a well-deserved break from the stresses of school. These three simple things that are often taken for granted should be at the top of our priority lists during this Thanksgiving season.
So travel safe on your way to wherever you go to celebrate. Hug your family and friends. Eat more than double your body weight. And breathe a sigh of relief as you don’t have to wake up for your 8 a.m. for a few days.
And just think, if you bring back enough leftovers you just might make it to Christmas break without having to eat cafe food, and who wouldn’t be thankful for that?
