“Give thanks not just on Thanksgiving Day,
but every day of your life.
Appreciate and never take for granted all that you have.”
〜〜Catherine Pulsifer〜〜
A memory came to me about Thanksgiving dinner. You would never have known it at school being an introvert and extremely shy, but around my family, I was a talker. You could not shut me up during the holidays. I anticipated my favorites, dark meat, mashed potatoes & gravy, and of course a few olives on my fingers. Blackberry pie from blackberries we picked that summer.
As a little girl, I grew a few inches each year. I was told often that I was "growing like a weed.” I would blush and hope that I was big enough for that adult table this year. Was I more mature and not annoying this year? Excited to be around people that loved me for ME!
I was demoted, depending on the cooks (older women in our family), mood changes, I figured. Was I still immature for adult conversation? The adult table was always so big in my adolescent eyes, filling up the whole living room, and there was the kids' card table for four.
“Bless this Thanksgiving, I hope everyone is in a good mood and will be for Christmas, too,
“ I prayed. “True forgiveness is when you can say, “ Thank you for that experience.”
〜Oprah Winfrey〜
My family was everything, and spending time with them was the highlight of my year. The more the merrier, gathering and talking about the years past and the year to come. I could not wait to see my uncles, aunts, and cousins, and I prepared every year to show up as myself in hopes to sit at the adult table. But do you know: “What I would not give to be seated at the kids' table,” with the family I love around me. Our family is smaller now, but I cherish the memories.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Love,
Jaci
