Almost Thanksgiving: Tuesday's Reflection

One of the pleasures of my life has been to create a setting in which family and friends gather. 

That has been a guiding light for me in each of our homes over the years. Yes, I hope our home reflects our personalities and our interests, but I also hope our home is viewed as comfort, as safety, as sanctuary, and even, if I may be so bold, as a slice of beauty.


Whether it is the twice a month gathering of my writing group or a visit from out-of-town guests for a couple nights or the monthly Sunday night potluck we host for four other couples, I begin the welcome by planning the food, ironing the napkins, setting the table. Each step is a little prayer, a blessing.

How true that is as I think about Thanksgiving Day. 

This year our children and their beloved spouses and our grandchildren will fill our small dining room--a smaller group than some years, but memories of other more boisterous years are not far away. 

When we lived at Sweetwater Farm in Ohio our goal was to squeeze as many loved ones around the Harvest Table as possible. Sometimes our guests earned their turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes by participating in the annual round-up of our animals--llamas, sheep, goats, donkey--for their winter's confinement in the barn. Always a hilarious event. 

Some years my father and I drove out into Amish country the day before Thanksgiving to pick up the fresh turkey I had ordered from a country meat market. We took our time driving the country roads past Amish farms with sheets on the clotheslines and buggies in the driveways. 

When we lived in Madison, we filled each of the guest rooms in our large home with family and friends who sprawled all through the house before the feast watching football, reading by the fire, snitching another piece of lefse or wandering into the kitchen to sniff and ask if the turkey was almost ready. 

One year after dinner we went for a walk  and when we returned, we discovered our granddog, Ralph, had eaten the entire apple pie! Oh well, always concerned about having enough food, we had more than one pie. And then the next day there were leftovers! 

I am sure you have many Thanksgiving memories, too, and could easily begin a sentence saying, "Remember the year...."

Soon I will set the table for this year and as I do so, I will remember past years. I will wonder what new memories we will create, and I will give thanks for this year.

         When one evokes the good life, there is nothing
         quite so heartwarming and reassuring as the thought
         of one's friends and relatives gathering around a full
         table. There is a communion of more than bodies when
         people share a meal. Indeed, if the destiny of nations
         depended on what and how they eat, the same is true of
         individuals...One rediscovers the simple joys of 
         impatience and curiosity with the first bite of food, and 
         then delight, passionate discussions, and soon a sense of
         well-being. The meal creates a bond, an exchange, an 
         interaction of energies, a true connection.
                                         The French Family Feast
                                         A Menu Cookbook
                                         Mireille Johnston

An Invitation
What are some of your favorite Thanksgiving memories? I would love to know.