Their fifth year since college, the group decided to gather again for Thanksgiving. The day prior, Kyle and Rachel opened their doors for Jeanette and George and Christa and Tyler as well as their kids.<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay,\u201d Kyle said, when they\u2019d all caught up and settled for a while. \u201cWho wants to be in charge of what?\u201d<\/p>\n
Assignments were divvied up and preparations for the following day began. Of course plans are often arbitrary, means simply to ensure everything makes its way to the table, and so one person might be working on the dressing while peeling a potato for another. Or another prepared the vegetable tray and reached over someone else to hand over celery for the dressing.<\/p>\n
Many of the preparations could be finished by the evening before Thanksgiving, and this allowed for making pies in the morning, leaving them fresh for eating after a good meal\u2019s nap.<\/p>\n
From the wee hours of Thanksgiving morning, the turkey slow-cooked in its juices, the savory smell wafting throughout the cozy home as everyone woke up.<\/p>\n
Children helped set the table and adults finished anything that had to be done today, but as eleven inched towards noon, their Thanksgiving dinner was ready.<\/p>\n
Preparations complete, they sat down and began to eat.<\/p>\n
Dishes moved around the table \u2013 George shoveling potatoes onto his plate, Rachel reaching for the dressing, Tyler putting fresh cranberry sauce on a warm roll. Jeanette poured herself some of the cider they\u2019d purchased for this occasion and Kyle poured gravy over almost everything on his plate. Christa\u2019s forte was the vegetable platter.<\/p>\n
Similar actions took place at the kids table, as nobody was young enough to need their food chopped up but not old enough to try and parent their siblings or friends. One or two minor tussles may have broken out, but nothing more than a reminder from someone at the grown-up table could stop the kids before a real argument developed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, it being Thanksgiving,\u201d Tyler said as he dished himself some of the melon-colored fruit salad, \u201cwe should go around the table telling what we\u2019re grateful for.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOoh, that\u2019s a good idea,\u201d Jeanette said. \u201cDo you mind if I begin?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGo ahead,\u201d Tyler said, passing the fruit salad along to George. He accepted the potatoes from Christa.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m grateful for friends and family, loved ones all around,\u201d Jeanette said. \u201cNot just that, I\u2019m grateful to have them around. Merely knowing they exist is not the same as enjoying their company on occasion.\u201d<\/p>\n
She took a bite of dressing covered in warm turkey gravy and savored the taste as much as the moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo true,\u201d Christa said, raising her glass in toast to Jeanette\u2019s remarks. \u201cI\u2019m grateful for good food to share with those friends.\u201d<\/p>\n
She smiled and took a sip from her glass.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell,\u201d Tyler said, \u201cyou\u2019ve taken mine right out from under me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He grinned.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo friends and food and all things good in between. May our days be happy and wholesome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many of the others raised their glasses and toasted as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut as for something other than what\u2019s been said,\u201d Tyler said, \u201cI\u2019m grateful for the full bellies were going to have, the unavoidable naps as we try to read or relax on sofas and chairs and the floor in the other room. For warmth and dryness inside on cold rainy days, and for the general pleasures of reading that enrapture us with the creations of others.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWow,\u201d Kyle said. \u201cDid you steal that from somewhere? Bravo, bravo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re just getting started, no?\u201d George grinned and winked. \u201cBut alas, I guess the floor is mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not eating on the floor Uncle George!\u201d a voice at the kids table giggled.<\/p>\n
The grown-ups hadn\u2019t noticed the funny silence of their kids listening in on their conversation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho said that?\u201d George said, eyeing the kids table as if he were a little one himself trying to put on a glower.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did,\u201d Uncle George,\u201d said Maddy.<\/p>\n
George, who knew all along who\u2019d said it, laughed and said, \u201cOf course you did.\u201d<\/p>\n
He held his hand up for the kids to see, and they all burst into laughter at the sight of black olives on all of his fingers. George playfully stuck his tongue out, put on a haughty, stuck-up face and pretended to turn all attention away from them.<\/p>\n
\u201cWoe is me,\u201d he turned back and said to the kids. \u201cI must tell these old folk something I\u2019m grateful for.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell go on,\u201d Ben, oldest of the kids, prodded.<\/p>\n
George grinned again, bit into a sweet pickle, chewed and swallowed and said, \u201cI\u2019m grateful for Someone to thank when I\u2019m feeling grateful, for someone to plea to when I need help, for comfort when I need it and the same for all of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou mean God?\u201d Rachel asked for clarification.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d George said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho or what do you thank if you don\u2019t believe there is a God?\u201d Jeanette asked.<\/p>\n
She\u2019d been on a long spree of doubt about God even when they roomed together.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou thank God of course,\u201d Rachel said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI said if you don\u2019t believe in God,\u201d Jeanette reiterated.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou thank God,\u201d Rachel said. \u201cMaybe you don\u2019t think of God as some All-Powerful, Supreme Being. Maybe you think of Him as simply nature and science at work, and maybe you give nature a female assignment or none at all. Maybe your \u2018god\u2019 is the Almighty, Pure and Unadulterated Accident, Coincidence that resulted in our being. God is a name we\u2019ve put on Whoever or whatever created us, so naturally if you want to thank someone or something, you thank God.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jeanette did not like the idea of thanking God, but she had to concede Rachel made an excellent point.<\/p>\n
\u201cI guess that makes sense,\u201d she said, taking a small bite of potatoes and gravy.<\/p>\n
Little Bruce at the small table cried out, aghast. Everyone from the grown-up table looked over and laughed or giggled at his struggle with the juicy drumstick that kept slipping through his fingers. He looked over at them and said, \u201cIt won\u2019t let me hold it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe if you wipe your fingers on that napkin,\u201d Theo said, pointing to Little Bruce\u2019s cloth napkin.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not a napkin,\u201d Little Bruce said, reaching for it. \u201cThat\u2019s a small table cloth.\u201d<\/p>\n
His comment created more happy laughter and Kyle reassured him the small table cloth was indeed a napkin, one of a special sort only used for holidays and such. Little Bruce wiped his fingers on the napkin and the grown-up table resumed their discussion.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know,\u201d Kyle said, \u201cI\u2019m grateful to be alive. I don\u2019t mean that in some sort of \u2018boohoo my life is terrible but I\u2019m trying to be positive\u2019 sort of way. I mean to be alive, to soar and be free. To go out and reach for the stars and get them, to achieve or die doing so. To be truly alive, that\u2019s what I mean.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a good one,\u201d Christa said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you,\u201d Kyle said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m grateful for the happy moments,\u201d Rachel said. \u201cI know, any moment can be a blessing from God, good or bad. But I\u2019m grateful for the happy moments, the ones that make life worth living. Get rid of those, and it\u2019s all a bunch of misery. Maybe I couldn\u2019t appreciate them if there weren\u2019t bad ones as well, but I\u2019d never be happy without good times.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHear, hear!\u201d said Macy from the kids table. She stood up with her cup in her hand.<\/p>\n
Rachel turned, looked and smiled. \u201cAnd for our children, they make us work but they bring such joy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAmen to that,\u201d said Kyle.<\/p>\n
The others chuckled.<\/p>\n
Their talking continued, the eating went on, and stomachs grew full while friendships grew strong.<\/p>\n
Dinners may come and dinners may go, and time may wax and time may wane, but those moments together are what matter forever.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Their fifth year since college, the group decided to gather again for Thanksgiving. The day prior, Kyle and Rachel opened their doors for Jeanette and George and Christa and Tyler as well as their kids. \u201cOkay,\u201d Kyle said, when they\u2019d all caught up and settled for a while. \u201cWho wants to be in charge of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10,11,15,1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-547","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-holidays","7":"category-my-writing","8":"category-thanksgiving","9":"category-uncategorized","10":"czr-hentry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tdspeirs.com\/oldblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}