Growing up my family had some very weird traditions. For example, we wouldn’t gather with family for a turkey dinner on Thanksgiving day; instead, we would drive north out of Colorado and end up at an open hotel for a crummy cheeseburger in downtown Cheyenne. Our Christmas plans were only slightly more glamorous.

Fast forward to my lifestyle as a pilot and most of my holiday dinners were on the road at some empty hotel restaurant or bar and I never thought twice about it. Although the most memorable was at a swanky place in downtown Austin, Texas. After delivering passengers around all day to be with their families, all I wanted was some pie. My company gave us a $50 allowance on Thanksgiving and Christmas to treat ourselves to a nice meal and we planned to use it all. I didn’t care about the turkey or side dishes but I wanted that pie. To this day all I remember about that meal was the small, deconstructed layered pie in a shot glass like those colored sand jars I made as a kid. What a let down.

This year everyone is being asked to stay at home and not gather outside of our nuclear families. I know this is hard for many people who have always had large Thanksgiving dinners that are basically ingrained into their DNA. But I think of all the pilots who get to be home and the pilot spouses and families who possibly get to be together (on the actual date) this year.

Maybe you get to make your own traditions. Maybe it’s going around the table and saying what you are thankful for. Maybe it’s drawing turkey hands with the kids. Maybe it’s contemplating the true meaning of Thanksgiving Day and rebuilding your own weird traditions.

Either way, be where your hands are, be grateful, and I hope you get your pie just the way you like it!