Blue Umbrella Official Thanksgiving_Christmas Issue-1 | Page 8

Du r in g t h e h olidays, m y f am ily an d I adh er e t o m ost con ven t ion s. How ever , on e special
t r adit ion t h at ou r f am ily h as m ain t ain ed over t h e year s is t ellin g an ecdot es f r om
pr eviou s h olidays...
Wh o St ole t h e Ham ?
My father ?s grandfather and
great-uncles would close their businesses
during Thanksgiving weekend and meet at
my great-grandfather ?s house for the whole
weekend. One of them would be
responsible for bringing a ham for the day
after Thanksgiving. My great- grandfather
and his brothers were very fun-loving and
always crafted a prank. However, my
great-grandmother and the other women
did not appreciate their antics. Being aware of the story, my father told them
that he could not find the ham. Growing
impatient, my grandmother called everyone
together and demanded the ham. No one
knew where the ham was and my
grandmother had to cook the rib roast that
was meant for Saturday. After dinner, all of
the scraps were gathered and given to my
father ?s dog Empress. Empress was an 85lb.
finicky German Shepherd. Out of character,
she was not enthusiastic to eat the meat.
Knowing a turkey was going to be for
Thanksgiving, the ham was saved for the
next day. Sometime during Thanksgiving
Day, my great-grandfather or one of his
brothers hid the ham. The following day
when the women were to cook the ham,
they could not find it. This tradition
continued until my great-grandparents
passed away. T