November slips away, Thanksgiving
surprises us next week and the stores groan with Christmas
merchandise.
Every year, I regret this commercial
leap into Christmas with little notice of Thanksgiving.
I love Thanksgiving—it’s my favorite family
holiday. Yearly, my sister and I put on a dinner party
and celebrate to the hilt. We pull out all the stops—the
rarely used good china comes out of its hiding place and
nice linens drape the extra tables. We cater as much food
as possible (OK, neither one of us can actually cook—we
just like a good party!). Then we enjoy our annual tease-fest
about my sister’s list.
My sister, the list maker.
Because of her small kitchen, only one person at a time
can work there. So she writes a detailed list: who, when
and what. For example, at 9:35 a.m., the turkey goes into
the oven (her job). At 10:48 a.m., I’m to appear
and begin the appetizer trays. At 1:14 p.m., the cheese
tray (according to schedule, prepared by me the previous
evening) is removed from the refrigerator so the cheeses
can come to proper temperature.
Each year, I mess up her list.
My children, all of whom live far away, start showing
up just as I’m supposed to be doing a task in the
kitchen, so I immediately drop everything to visit with
them. Personally, I think they do this on purpose because
they get such a kick out of teasing their aunt and also
because they know I will do anything to get out of following
a list.
And then we give thanks. We
give thanks for family, for the love and laughter we share.
We give thanks for the health we are permitted to enjoy,
for traveling mercies which bring us together, for the
privilege of living freely. We give thanks for our pains
and sorrows for they help us recognize our humanness and
God’s otherness. We give thanks that we can give
to others the grace given to us. Let’s most definitely
not forget this holiday. Let us give thanks together.
