Thanksgiving

I broke up the shopping experiences of Black Friday with good quality family time for thanksgiving. We opted to eat a day after Thanksgiving to allow us to relax a bit before attacking the meal preparations.
And boy did that work out well.
I know that I sometimes say negative things about my home country, but Thanksgiving is a wonderful American holiday. I am not forgetting about the horrible things that happen to the first people to lived here. That isn’t the holiday I celebrate. My holiday is about giving thanks, eating seasonal food, and reflection. I believe that the pilgrims based their holiday on a Jewish custom of thanksgiving. I like to think that my holiday is also about giving thanks – not puritanical views on society, sex and fun, nor on fundamental religious values, nor to forget the Native Americans who fared so terribly when white people arrived to this continent.

I also LOVE setting the table for holiday meals. Always have, probably always will. This year we were using my Grandma Ketty’s china; it is unlike anything you can buy nowadays. You touch it and feel history and remember things. For me I remember seeing it in the cabinets up at the Haskel in rural New York being amazed of what you can find in the closets in semi-remote areas.

The post feast walk is another tradition in my family.

It didn’t matter where we were celebrating a holiday, typically once the plates were cleared there was some kind of walk. At the Gruebe’s Easter, we walked the length of half mile lane. Some years we drove to University Falls or to some other location Dad had discovered in the valley. But more often than not, we walked around the property noting the changes that happen year to year and season to season.


The after walk entertainment varies. Traditional options included playing music together or cut-throat scrabble games. This year Adrian taught me to play cribbage. My mental math skills are dramatically improving!