Now that Thanksgiving Day has drawn to a close and it is 10:30 PM, I am sitting on my bed listening to the wind and the rain beat against my windows. Three adorable cats are napping at my feet and a warm comforter is draped over my lap. I have checked in with my mother in Minnesota and all is right with the world (at least with my world). It is time to reflect on my day.
Being in my forty-fifth year of life, (hence the title of this blog entry), I have learned that some holidays are great and some just don’t meet your expectations. Last Thanksgiving fell in the latter category. Occurring only two weeks after the death of my beloved father, I probably could have eaten McDonalds cheeseburgers for the holiday and called it a success. Everyone was in a bit of a fog. Add the fact that my daughter’s church classmate died just two days before Thanksgiving, and that her funeral was just two days after Thanksgiving, my family felt anything but festive. By contrast, Thanksgiving Day 2006 will probably go down as one of my more enjoyable holidays.
The day began with, believe it or not, three loads of laundry: towels, whites, and darks. While those were in progress, I loaded the dishwasher and started shuffling family members through the shower. At some point in the morning, the family began watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and started munching on the monkey bread that I made yesterday. About 10:30 AM, the home team began making the two caramel apple pies that we were assigned as our contribution to Thanksgiving dinner. By 1:00 PM, the pies were done and we were ready to leave for Niantic.
Our Thanksgiving meal was fabulous: turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, green been casserole, creamed onions, Brussels sprouts, parsnips with carrots, green salad, ambrosia salad, crudités, crescent rolls, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, Toll House pie, caramel apple pie, and blueberry pie. Several families each contributed a dish or two. The food was delicious and the company was more than congenial. All in all, I had a relaxing time … and I didn’t overeat. A single one-cup serving of each item in the buffet line definitely gave me a reasonable guideline to follow for food consumption. Admittedly, I did indulge in more than one piece of pie but, hey, Thanksgiving is a holiday. Right?
Topics of conversation over dinner and after dinner:
- homeschooling
- reminiscing about past CHOOSE CT homeschooling events
- faith questions in the Westminster Catechism & church confessions
- our preference for a reformed Christian faith practice*
- our favorite movies and current/upcoming movies
- family histories
- reminiscing about how some of us knew each other
- the miraculous, yet mysterious, function of the human brain**
- blogging & other online activities
- the impact of the Internet on social interaction culture-wide
- how to use a Russian samovar for making tea***
As I said, the company was more than congenial; it was downright edifying. I so enjoy interacting with people who have such a broad base of knowledge. It makes conversation that much more rewarding.
So, now I am home and ready to turn in for the evening, incredibly grateful for the material abundance I enjoy, but even more grateful for the amazing people that the Lord has sent into my life --- people who love me as I am, who hold me accountable when necessary, and who inspire me to grow and improve daily. I pray God blesses them as much as they have blessed me and my family.
Happy Thanksgiving!
* all present were either LCMS Lutheran or PCA Presbyterian
** one of our friends had a stroke two years ago
*** our host acquired one of these while traveling in Russia
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