Spring Break
The Daily OrangeHoliday greetings from gammy Stickles
By Jessica Stickles
Posted: 11/17/05, 11:31 PM EST Section: Opinion
The air has become a bit crisper and harder to breathe in these days. Perhaps it's the bitterness people feel for one Chance … see, I almost did it. But I won't. No, my dear friends, today is not about anger and outrage. Today is about celebrating. The air is a bit crisper because it is winter, and thus, the holiday season is upon us. Hurrah! (I'm terribly sorry; the holiday season makes me speak in a British accent.)
Thanksgiving is a mere week away. I know the Stickles family is preparing a feast. Yes, the Stickles shall gather around the hearth, eat many a stuffed poultry, sing jaunty tunes and dance, dance into the moonlight. Listen, I don't judge what your family does; you don't dare judge mine.
In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, I wish to share a story. My story involves not a Thanksgiving feast, but a Christmas feast a few years ago. I was still attending grade school and had the youth of a young, adorable, carefree fawn. Grandma Stickles had come up from downstate New York. With her, she brought a ham. Hurrah! (Sorry, the whole British thing again.) On Christmas Eve, we ate her ham. We ate her ham right up!
The next day, we opened gifts and then delighted in the merriment of men. (Again, no judging.) At this point, my grandmother said, "I am hungry. Let us eat ham! The ham I brought!" We all looked confused. Had she forgotten that she, too, had eaten the ham with us the night prior? Had our beloved gammy lost it? We informed her that the ham had been eaten, and there was no ham for dinner. Enraged, my gammy locked herself in her room and refused to talk to us. Yes. Over a ham.
Hungry as well, we sought out sustenance and found a Chinese food place. And it was a merry Stickles Christmas indeed.
Now, young children, what can we learn from gammy Stickles? Well, it seems there is a moral to my hammy tale. (I know, hilarious pun.) We cannot simply storm off upset, making demands without listening. We cannot participate in the eating of ham (prolonging of a situation) and then blame everyone else. If we are to solve any problem, such as diversity or heightened tuition or hunger for ham, we must all come to the table, hear each other out and then feast on some Chinese food. The steamed dumplings are delicious. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
Thanksgiving is a mere week away. I know the Stickles family is preparing a feast. Yes, the Stickles shall gather around the hearth, eat many a stuffed poultry, sing jaunty tunes and dance, dance into the moonlight. Listen, I don't judge what your family does; you don't dare judge mine.
In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, I wish to share a story. My story involves not a Thanksgiving feast, but a Christmas feast a few years ago. I was still attending grade school and had the youth of a young, adorable, carefree fawn. Grandma Stickles had come up from downstate New York. With her, she brought a ham. Hurrah! (Sorry, the whole British thing again.) On Christmas Eve, we ate her ham. We ate her ham right up!
The next day, we opened gifts and then delighted in the merriment of men. (Again, no judging.) At this point, my grandmother said, "I am hungry. Let us eat ham! The ham I brought!" We all looked confused. Had she forgotten that she, too, had eaten the ham with us the night prior? Had our beloved gammy lost it? We informed her that the ham had been eaten, and there was no ham for dinner. Enraged, my gammy locked herself in her room and refused to talk to us. Yes. Over a ham.
Hungry as well, we sought out sustenance and found a Chinese food place. And it was a merry Stickles Christmas indeed.
Now, young children, what can we learn from gammy Stickles? Well, it seems there is a moral to my hammy tale. (I know, hilarious pun.) We cannot simply storm off upset, making demands without listening. We cannot participate in the eating of ham (prolonging of a situation) and then blame everyone else. If we are to solve any problem, such as diversity or heightened tuition or hunger for ham, we must all come to the table, hear each other out and then feast on some Chinese food. The steamed dumplings are delicious. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
Jessica Stickles is a senior television, radio, and film and political science major. You can reach her at jastickl@syr.edu.
