Over the River

Alamb

Author/Television Reporter

Amanda Lamb is a professional television journalist and author. She covers murder trials by day and reads Dora the Explorer to her children at night. Somewhere in between all of that she writes about those parenting moments that catch each us off-guard in a crazy, chaotic, and wonderful way. Aman...

Amanda Lamb

Thursday, November, 22, 2007

Today I have my first Thanksgiving off in roughly eighteen years. In television news you always have to work several holidays a year no matter how many years you’ve been with a particular company. So, Thanksgiving was always my holiday to work. It was usually spent covering some fairly light feature story with a lunch stop at a local buffet with my photographer and a bunch of strangers. But this year for the first time ever I will eat with my family.

Now don’t get the misguided concern that I might actually cook. I was a little concerned that might be a requirement of having the day off, but thankfully no one wants to eat my cooking any more than I do. It is not my strong suit. No, instead I did what any civilized non-cook in my situation would do, I made reservations.

It is funny, I don’t particularly like turkey or the stuff that goes along with it. I’m not a big football fan. I also don’t enjoy forcing family members together who don’t necessarily want to be together. Yet I always missed the thought of sitting at a table with my children on one of the most traditional and celebrated holidays of the year.

This year there will be no strangers at my table, and I may even eat a slice of turkey.