Honors College Art & Science of Emotions Fall 2017 (1:20 p.m.) Sadness Journal | Page 18

Firstly, Thanksgiving has high expectations when it comes to the actual party or gathering.
Whether or not you host or go to a Thanksgiving gathering, Thanksgiving is supposed to be filled with
laughter, good times, and even better food. Everybody is expected to be helping in the kitchen and having
high spirits. With the expectation, however, the reality is that whether you host the gathering or go to
one, you are not really sure which is worse. If you host the gathering you have chores all week long lead-
ing up to Thanksgiving to prepare for the dreaded family members to come over. You then cook, clean,
and run errands to the point where it is almost tiring. If you attend a gathering, however, you can get
stuck in the dreaded holiday traffic and tensions are high with the people you share the car with. What bet-
ter way to be thankful. This is just one example to how Thanksgiving, in particular, can be stressful and
thus create sadness.
Secondly, the family and food has high expectations as well. With the family, you are expected to
be happy and excited to see your family members and reminisce on the fun pasts. The reality is that you
may see distant relatives or family that may not be happy to see you. You will then be asked countless
questions like; “Do you have a boyfriend yet?” or “How is school going?” which will then make you want to
get out of any of those conversations. These questions may then make you sad because some of your family
may have high expectations for you in which you may not meet their expectations. This creates sadness
and depression within yourself because you feel like you failed them. In addition to the family expectation,
the food and plating is supposed to be plated perfectly and taste delicious, however, by the time the turkey
is done, all side dishes are becoming cold and you have already become so hungry that you may become
“hangry.” This feeling only makes more family arguments and the constant complaining of “Is the food al-
most done?” or “Is it ready yet?”
Thirdly, traditions have high expectations to be followed. For example, every year my family
watches the Thanksgiving Day Parade in Detroit before we head to my grandma's for dinner. When dinner
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