Guide to Reducing Family Tensions during Thanksgiving Dinner
Thanksgiving dinner can often be a stressful time for the host and all the guests because of the gathering of family members both closely related and extended. With the mix of a large amount of people comes the mix of personalities, beliefs and often underlying deep family issues that may have remained dormant because of distance throughout the year. However, there are ways in reducing family tensions at your Thanksgiving dinner while actually bringing family members closer together.
Downtime
When hosting a Thanksgiving dinner, every cook knows that timing is the key. With multiple dishes being made with varying cook times, it’s important to properly time yourself to ensure everything is cooked and ready at the same time. This involves a lot of extra time and effort in preparing the meal but will ensure a shorter downtime wait area for your guests.
Much of the stress and tensions that can come at a Thanksgiving event involves the mingling of guests before, during and after dinner. Downtime before dinner can increase the chances of stressful conversations before the actual meal. You can limit these tensions by simply timing properly and inviting guests at a time that doesn’t allow much downtime before the meal. This can help to ensure the meal begins without any fresh tensions.
Potluck
Instructing guests to bring their own special dish to the Thanksgiving dinner is a great way to help redirect focus onto happier conversational pieces. Not only will your guests be otherwise preoccupied in bringing a dish they can be proud of but it will allow a conversation piece that cohesively brings the family together for a united goal.Potluck Thanksgiving recipescan range from the ordinary to the extraordinary and can make your event that much more elaborate while allowing your guests to partake in the festivities of the meal.
Dinner conversation
Just as the bar rule goes, “Never talk religion, politics or race,” the same should be adhered to for a Thanksgiving dinner. Hot button conversation issues can help to stir tensions and can make for an awkward dinner. As a host, it is part of your job to ensure a smooth flow in conversation at the dinner table and this includes straying from harsh topics, as well as being able to switch topics smoothly between guests.
A great way to keep dinner conversation from turning ugly can be to start a conversation topic that allows everyone their own turn. A great tradition for Thanksgiving is to go around the table and allow everyone to say what they are thankful for during the year. This is an upbeat activity that allows the conversation to stay positive while passing the time during dinner in a constructive way.
Separation
In many families, there will inevitably be increased family tensions between certain individuals. As a host, it’s important to defuse these tensions simply by separating those that might be at odds with one another. This might mean seating individuals farther away from one another or implementing separate tables that will help ease the flow of your Thanksgiving dinner party.
Family tensions can be difficult to maneuver no matter what the occasion. However, it’s important to remember the spirit of the holiday and what it represents. Although there may be tensions between certain individuals, the idea of coming together as a family and being thankful for all the blessings during the year is important in maintaining family unity. With a few simple tricks, your Thanksgiving dinner can turn into something looked forward to every year without worrying about any tensions that might spoil your event.
