The leaves are falling, the gardens are shrivelled, and even though it has been exceptionally warm and gorgeous in DC (highs in the 60s, even 70s) I haven't seen anyone in flip flops for a couple of weeks. Fall has established itself at last. I love fall.
My morning routine these days includes writing, then meditation after which I pray. This week I'm also sending Reiki to the Spirit of Turkey every morning. I believe it's on the Saturday and Sunday before Thanksgiving that most of the turkeys will be sacrificed. Yeah, sacrificed. Thanksgiving is one of the last rituals of animal sacrifice we Americans embrace, oh yeah.
Animal populations come and go of course, just like everything. But every year we engage in the slaughter of forty six million turkeys, all at once, (number according to the source I saw when I googled). That number might not be exact, but it's a lot of turkeys. The oversoul of the animal takes a big hit on the slaughter days. It is to that oversoul I send Reiki.
We at least eat the animals after the slaughter, in a prosperity feast of overindulgence. I'm going to engage in the ritual this year, but oh you'd better believe I will honor the poor, humble "heirloom breed" turkey I'm going to roast here at the chateau. I think it's better to honor the bird than try to ignore what's really happening. I will honor the turkey with ritual ablutions of butter and fresh herbs, and bow my head in prayers of thanksgiving when it goes in the oven. I will sing heroic songs to honor the dinosaurs of old, the bird's genetic ancestors.
Will my behavior be any weirder than the president's when he "pardons" a turkey? He reads some kind of proclamation, everyone chuckles, the turkey goes back to the farm. Completely bizarre, hey? It does confirm, however, that we are engaged in a mass ritual of animal genocide, otherwise, why a pardon?
This post sounds so serious - it doesn't match my mood at all. I'm really looking forward to T-day, but I want to do it right, you know, my version of "right." All hail the Spirit of Turkey!!
19 comments:
gorgeous picture there at the bottom. a beautiful display of color. here it's just a slow fading.
all hail the spirit of Turkey. give strength to the oversoul.
So may it be!
Ellen it was not a spectacular fall here either - dry all summer then too much rain at the end, only the most hearty of the trees have turned.
I manage not to contemplate my poor turkey as a sentient being......
it would make me too gloomy.....
oxox
Ah, Elizabeth, don't be gloomy. You know I take things on in a big way. Cheers!
I googled just now - 46 million turkeys.
But it only takes place in America. No turkeys on a Thursday in November here in Europe.
At Christmas it`s often goose for dinner, or carp, or just plain sausages with potato salad.
Why does it HAVE to be turkey, I wonder? Why not a nice veggie lasagne?
Vegetarians and vegans sometimes construct fake turkeys made of foods they are allowed to eat. I'm tellin you, it is a powerful ritual!
We got a wild turkey this year--I looked out the kitchen window, and there were four huge gobblers eating our WINTER WHEAT! Three flew away down the mountain (and will not trouble our garden for a while, at least). The one that didn't was a beautiful, magnificent bird, enjoyed by us, cat Princess, and some bobcats. There are still some pretty feathers in the yard.
We're planning on deer meat for Thanksgiving, as usual. I think it's more traditional. May your special meal be fun to make and delicious to eat!
I like the idea of thanking and honoring the animals we make sacrifices of so we can eat. Adding my chants to yours.
Venison is more traditional? Googling now! Rebecca, y'all live closer to the land than we urban folks.
Very cool! Here's a brief history from the Washington Post last year. Thanks, Rebecca.
Hi Reya~! Our fall was not a great one either. Like you; too much rain. Somehow it makes me feel better that the turkey on my Thanksgiving table has been raised for the sole purpose of food, unlike the wild band of 13 turkeys that come to my yard. No way could I eat one of them. Domestic turkeys are almost a different breed. Or at least it makes me feel better to think that way. ;)
We tried one year when we lived in France to find a turkey at Thanksgiving. None to be had! Come Christmas it was a whole different story.
Sorry I haven't been by lately!
Enjoy your feast!
Thanks Lynn. I need to come visit you, too.
And I get your logic except commerical turkeys are animals, too.
I had an Amish turkey last year for the first Thanksgiving dinner I'd cooked in over twenty years. It is very exciting when you haven't done it in a while and I'm really enjoying your excitement this year while rejoicing in the fact that all I have to do this time around is cook a small turkey to get drippings and broth for the gravy I'm going contribute to my brother's feast. And horseradish mashed potatoes.
Horseradish mashed potatoes?? RECIPE PLEASE??
It's kind of a made up recipe - you can adjust things as you go along, adding ingredients until you get it tasting the way you want. You'll probably find much more precise measurements and proportions by googling. I'm sure there's a "real" recipe for this out there somewhere, but here's the basic idea:
1. Wash and then score the skins of 5 white potatoes a bunch of times with a fork so they'll blend into the texture after they're cooked, and cut them into quarters.
2. Boil them in slightly salted water until they seem tender enough to mash.
3. Drain and mash with about 2 pats of butter and enough half and half to get it to the right consistency.
4. Add more or less to taste of about 2 teaspoons of dijon mustard and 2 teaspoons of horseradish (from a jar) and add salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy!
Thank you! Sounds delicious!
It absolutely makes sense that we should remember the sacrifice of the turkeys, not to mention the labor of the turkey growers, the shippers, the grocers, everyone. A lot of labor goes into Thanksgiving, not to mention the poor turkeys' lives.
Lovely time of yr. I particularly like the rose against the fall trees.
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