BY CECE HOLLOWAY

IMAGES BY SUE B. SIMON

It’s Thanksgiving Day. The smiling painting of an African woman wearing expensive African clothing and jewelry greets us into this gorgeous 5,000-ft-square brand-new home built on a .6-acre land in an affluent neighborhood of Northern Virginia. Alongside a painting by Norman Rockwell and other classics, there is an appetizing picture of African cuisine with the title Palaver sauce, a dish from Ghana. Opposite to that are various carvings from West Africa, a sword symbolizing the war prowess of an African king, not to mention a bright painting from Marcocco. Our hosts, a young mixed couple, welcome us warmly.

The text-book definition of diversity

Our hosts are as American as they come. The husband, a 53-year-old engineer of African roots, is married to a 49-year-old Caucasian woman from Europe, a graphic designer who came to the United States two decades ago thanks to the visa lottery. Both are graduates of America’s best universities and hold important positions in their respective jobs. Their cute five-year-old daughter steals the show during the dinner until her bedtime, sometimes asking Alexa to play this or that song.

A piece of the American pie

The family’s patriarch, also a Virginia resident, is present. He came to the United States from West Africa 40 years ago to pursue a Masters in one of America’s top universities, upon which he was hired by the American government and chose America as his new home. A decade later, he quit his job and created his own business.

Consistent with the American tradition of families gathering to celebrate Thanksgiving, two of the patriarch’s children are also present. The oldest daughter, a social worker who lives in New York, and the youngest daughter, an IT professional, who lives in Chicago. Remarkably, several European languages are spoken in the family besides English.

A quasi-typical Thanksgiving

The menu comprises most of the traditional Thanksgiving items: a golden-brown turkey, stuffing, baked ham, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, the legendary apple pie, cheesecake, and much more. In this family, the menu also includes non-traditional dishes reflective of the family’s West African culinary culture: Jollof, a dish made with long-grain rice cooked in a spicy, flavor-filled tomato sauce with other vegetables, fish, shrimp, or meat; Aloko (which also goes by other names), super-ripe plantains cut up in small pieces and fried in vegetable oil with an onion flavor; Yebese, a biting African hot sauce made with habanero, onion, garlic, ginger, salt, and—says the chef—African know-how; and Oba Salad (King’s Salad), a well-crafted salad comprising several vegetables topped with sliced boiled eggs and flavored shrimp sprinkled with a sauce that the patriarch says takes at least two hours to make.

In a family where the division of labor appears to be the norm, the man of the house—the patriarch’s oldest son—specializes in baking the turkey. For her part, the lady of the house makes all the hot vegetables and the mashed potato. The cheesecake and apple pie are a collective affair between the couple. The patriarch, for having the best skills in the family for making African food, is responsible for making the Aloko, the Jollof, and the hot sauce, in addition to crafting the Oba Salad. The rest of the family pretty much helps with chopping/cutting things and cleaning.

With the irresistible one thousand aromas of food floating in the air and quasi-palpable love flowing among the members of this close-knit family, the background music ranges from We Love Africa by RedOne ft. Aminux & Inna Modja, to Nigerian singer Rema’s Calm Down, Magic System’s Anoumabo Est Joli, Bruno Mars’s Leave the Door Open, Tarwa N Ayur’s Amoudou, Stromae’s Pour Ceux Qui N’en Ont Pas, and more.

The American ideal

The United States was built by immigrants and on the sweat and blood of African slaves. It’s often said, “America is not a country; it’s an ideal.” For centuries, in the pursuit of the American ideal of liberty, justice, equality, and opportunities, people from all over the world brought here not only their know-how, but also a cultural diversity that is at the core of the American exceptionalism.

The reunion of three generations of this African family under the same roof in Virginia where they feel at home yet away from home, with a mixed toddler immersed in three cultures—African, European, and American—speaks volumes about the American exceptionalism.