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10 Reasons Why Thanksgiving Is The Most Underrated Holiday

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at PSU chapter.

While many people have already traded in their pumpkins and candy for twinkle lights and gingerbread men, it is important not to forget about one of the greatest holidays of the year. Thanksgiving is a day full of love and food – why would anyone want to skip over that? Here are the top 10 reasons why everyone should think twice before putting up their Christmas tree up in the middle of November.

 

1. Family Time

As the holiday season begins to kick in so does the feeling of being homesick. This is the first time that many students will get to go home and be with their families since the start of the semester. Some quality time spent with family on Thanksgiving is sure to get rid of any homesick blues.

2. Friendships Reunited

Being separated from friends from back home can be hard, but Thanksgiving provides the perfect opportunity to catch up and spend some time together away from the group chat.

3. Friendships Reunited: Dog Edition

Spending a few months away from your dog is a few months too many. But don’t worry, you will get to spend as much time as you want cuddled up with your dog over Thanksgiving break.

4. Sweet Freedom

An entire week at home means an entire week spent watching Netflix, sleeping and avoiding all responsibilities. Sounds good to me.

5. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

A SpongeBob balloon flying through the streets of New York. Mariah Carey performing with the Muppets. The Rockettes kicking higher than my GPA. It doesn’t get much better than this 89-year-old Thanksgiving tradition.

6. Football

Whether you are watching football on TV or playing it in the backyard with your family, it is the only thing that holds everyone over until dinner is ready.

7. Thanksgiving Dinner

After months of eating “food” from the dining hall, it is time for the real stuff. From turkey and stuffing to sweet potato pie and mashed potatoes with gravy, Thanksgiving is the greatest food day of the year.

8. Post-Thanksgiving Dinner Food Coma

Prepare for the greatest nap of the year.

9. Leftovers

The only thing better than Thanksgiving Dinner is Thanksgiving Dinner #2.

10. Black Friday

Somewhere over the years, Black Friday has gone from starting at midnight to around 6 p.m. Either way, Thanksgiving provides an entire day of shopping with discounted prices. I can give thanks to that.

 

It’s sometimes easy to take this holiday for granted when Christmas is just around the corner. But really enjoy these 10 special things that this holiday has to offer because we have a lot to be thankful for. Have a Happy Thanksgiving, collegiettes! 

Photo credits: 1

Samantha Grillo graduated from Penn State University with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism. She loves creative writing, pop culture and Penn State, all of which led her to joining the Her Campus Penn State team at the beginning of her freshman year as a contributing writer. In her free time, Samantha enjoys reading, watching her favorite TV shows, and catching up on the latest movies. 
Rachael David is currently a senior at Penn State University and serves as the Campus Correspondent for Her Campus Penn State. She is majoring in public relations and minoring in psychology. Her love of creative writing and all things Penn State is what inspired her to become a member of the HC team in the fall of 2013. Her background experience includes working for the Undergraduate Admissions Office at Penn State as a social media intern in the spring of 2014 and is currently working as a social media intern for an internet marketing company in Harrisburg called WebpageFX. This past summer she also served as a PR intern for Tierney Communications. Rachael enjoys anything media related especially catching up on her favorite shows, including Saturday Night Live and any show on Food Network. She has a passion for food but also loves being active and spending her free time running or hiking. She hopes to gain more experience in all aspects of the media industry during college and plans on pursuing a career writing for a life & style publication in the future.