Happy Thanksgiving!

A few days ago James and I picked up turkeys at the grocery store. I put one of them in the fridge to thaw so I could cook it for our family. It sat there for a couple days. I knew it had to be thawed, but I put off getting it out and “cleaning it up” so I could cook it. Another day or two went by. Finally, I knew I’d better just buck up and do it.

I got the turkey out of the fridge, unwrapped it, rinsed it and voila! It was ready to go. Five minutes tops. All trussed up for me, with a little pin in the top to let me know it was done. Easy Peasy. Why had I put off doing it for an extra day or two? It turned out not to be that hard at all! Nearly sterile, in fact.

“What’s the big deal?” you might ask. “Why would you be so put off by doing a turkey?”

Let me tell you a little about Thanksgivings in Africa.

First of all, this is how we get our turkey. It’s up walking around and we can actually pick which bird we want. 

They smell funny and are kind of gross and that smell lingers. And lingers. You can still smell it, even after they are processed and you are ready to cook them.

Once you have your turkey, you have to find a way to process it. I consider myself pretty pioneer woman, but even I draw the line at prepping my own poultry. Maybe I’m squeamish. It’s just worth it to me to have someone else do it for me – I’m not sure I’d be able to eat it if I did it myself.

The next step in the process is, well, this. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I’ll let this one speak for itself.

(We took this picture a few years ago – the one and only time we photographed the process. After that we just remembered what it was like and didn’t record it for posterity. I wasn’t present at the taking of these photos. I was in the house trying not to think about what that smell was.)

I usually let the turkey sit in the fridge for a day. There are always feathers still stuck in the skin so I have to skin the thing. I also have to tie up the legs and get it to fit in my roaster. Have I mentioned that it smells funny? Refrigerating it helps it not smell quite so badly and I don’t gag nearly as much.

The other food is a lot more fun to cook! We usually have everything potluck style and everyone who comes shares in the preparation. Carla Bassett makes the best dressing and gravy and Cheryl Tracht’s dinner rolls and baked beans are to die for.

Everything has to be made from scratch. Want whipped topping? You have to get cream and whip it until it’s just right.

You have to plan ahead for pumpkin pie because pumpkins aren’t in season in Uganda in November. We’ve had a couple Thanksgivings without any!

You also have to plan ahead for pecan pie. We can’t get pecans in Uganda, so have to bring them with us from the states. Gotta love delicious Georgia pecans! We usual stock up when we drive through on furlough.

Green bean casserole is a challenge because you can’t get canned cream soup so you have to either make another kind of green beans or make your own cream soup (I’ve done both).

Thanksgiving in Uganda is fun and challenging and delicious. We always have friends over, both American and Ugandan. We sit around and eat way too much food and play games and talk and laugh and have a great time. Sometimes we have to plan our gathering around other events that are taking place (because it’s not a public holiday in Uganda). When we are finished, we call our family back home or message with them just as they are beginning their celebration. 

So, Happy Thanksgiving from our house (in which we’re serving store bought pie this year) to yours! May you remember the blessings of God and have a day filled with all your favorite things!