A Thanksgiving I’ll Never Forget
Women and nonbinary leaders in STEMM connect during the Homeward Bound journey to Antarctica, November 2023 | Image credits: Heidi Victoria
What Thanksgiving celebration became a core memory for you? I had one that involved “Alabama brownies”, snake stories, and accidentally invented traditions. Yes, you read that right, snakes were part of it!
Celebrating Thanksgiving at the Bottom of the World
Back in November 2023, I was on my way to Antarctica with an astonishing group of women and nonbinary people in STEMM who were committed to building their leadership practices. Fewer than 20 of us were from the USA. Instead of spending Thanksgiving with our families, we were on a ship, among the waves (the waves!), the ice, and penguins galore.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Yes, it’s a lot of work—weeks of work—to bring everyone together and enjoy a feast, whether you prefer the traditional turkey with trimmings or like to be a bit more adventurous. (I’ve basically given up on turkey for my Thanksgiving table … don’t tell anyone!)
Before leaving home, the Americans had chatted about how we wanted to share our traditions with the group—and with each other. We settled on a few things to bring from home; I printed out gratitude cards for us to fill out on the journey.
The day before Thanksgiving, we enjoyed an exceptional experience: visiting the USA’s Palmer Research Station. Honestly, I think the scientists at the station were just as excited to see us as we were to see them … post covid, visitors had been few and far between. It felt just that much more magical to be wishing someone happy Thanksgiving! while peering into buckets of krill and swerving around curious penguins.
Thanksgiving Traditions that Travel and Transform
Building connections and leadership capacity: Women and nonbinary STEMM professionals on the Homeward Bound voyage to Antarctica, 2023 | Image credits: Heidi Victoria
That night, we hosted a little Thanksgiving 101 over dinner. It was important to us Americans that everyone felt welcome to celebrate with us on the big day. “Find someone from the US at breakfast,” we urged the group and the ship’s staff. “Grab a gratitude card and tell us about the things you’re thankful for!”
Thursday was a brilliant and chilly day, with a hard blue sky and a packed schedule after breakfast. When dinner rolled around, the Americans found each other at one large table. Our British chef had clearly gone to a lot of effort to bring our traditions to us at the bottom of the world. It was fun, and occasionally puzzling and hilarious (what’s an “Alabama” brownie?), to decipher how our food traditions appear to someone outside our culture.
Over wine, we went around the table to share how each of our families celebrates Thanksgiving at home. Wine was poured. More stories were told. More stories. More wine. Some of us talked about our kids, and our worries, and our hopes for them ….
And then, suddenly, we were talking about snakes.
Tree viper | Image credits: Zachary Young | Unsplash
I think snakes came up because someone living in Guam had a son who wanted to be a snake hunter. (Snakes eat the birds’ eggs in Guam; it’s a problem.) That might have been it. But I simply cannot explain why we went around the table, telling more and more outrageous stories about snakes, as the night went on and all the pumpkin pie and brownies were consumed. I remember that at one point I had tears of laughter streaking down my face, and someone cried out, “Why are we still talking about snakes?”
Breakfast the next morning was a bit more subdued. Until one of my Aussie tablemates asked, quite reasonably, why the Americans had been making a fuss about snakes over dinner. I tried to explain … and then each person at the breakfast table was excitedly sharing a snake story! It happened again!
Looking Ahead: Why These Memories Matter for Our Future
That Thanksgiving dinner two Novembers ago on an Antarctic voyage has been a core memory for me. It reminds me of the human curiosity, care, and connection behind all these things we may see as big fields or high-level pursuits, like science and tech and leadership and sustainability. Scientists are not just people in the lab, and leaders are not just people in the spotlight. We also listen, learn, eat together, share stories, and care for one another (sometimes in the form of brownies and snake stories!).
This gives me courage and gratitude as we face the many grand challenges ahead. Climate change, food security, and the accelerating pace of change need us to collaborate with intention. That’s why these moments of celebrating diversity and community help us stay hopeful and keep us going while we work together to build better futures.
This week, as with every week since that amazing journey, I’ve been in touch with my Homeward Bound sisters. Babies have been born, careers have changed, risks have been taken … and this week, some of us are quietly sending snake emojis to each other.
What Thanksgiving moment, or holiday celebration, became a core memory for you?
About Tiffany
Dr. Tiffany Vora speaks, writes, and advises on how to harness technology to build the best possible future(s). She is an expert in biotech, health, & innovation.
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