As an immigrant, I love Thanksgiving

In 2013, I moved to the United States from the United Kingdom, and in the years since, I’ve learned that there are really two kinds of American holidays, particularly when genuine religious faith is pushed to the background. There are the loud, commercialized holidays that feel like a national competition over who can buy the most stuff, create the most elaborate Instagram posts, or produce the most intricate display of disposable consumerism.

And then there is Thanksgiving, the one holiday that asks nothing of you except to stop, breathe, gather, and give thanks. It’s simple in the most wonderful way, and in a culture increasingly obsessed with everything but the simple, this stubborn simplicity is a moment of relief.