There’s a sermon here somewhere. What to be thankful
for? Everything, pretty much. For children who are alive and body parts that
still work.
Let’s see. I’m living and breathing. My kids and husband
are doing the same. I have memories that keep me happy and thinking. I have
siblings who keep me guessing and engaged.
I have a roof over my head and food in my cupboards.
There are people right here in my town who I know have
neither. They keep me hoping and dreaming.
I’ve got enough food in my pantry right now to feed
twenty people tomorrow. The only problem being that I don’t have twenty people
coming.
For years, my best Thanksgivings have been cooking for
other people who I know don’t have a place to go. That means a true Thanksgiving
to me. Feeding somebody who wouldn’t have otherwise had that great big fat meal
I love so much.
I love all the foods….turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes,
pies of various kinds. It is all so good.
At the heart of my cooking is this feeling that I need to
feed people. I think this comes from my parents. They liked to feed people. We
had this great big pot from which came so many soups. They all tasted good…now
in my memory. When I was a kid I was not a fan of oxtail soup or beans and ham
hocks. That grew on me. Nowadays, I’d love the gift of ham hocks or oxtails.
I’d make a hearty soup of my own.
To this day, soup means love to me — a big ol’ pot that
serves a whole lot of people. Like Jesus with the loaves and fishes, the bigger
the pot the more people served.
Like every other year, I have a big turkey and way too
many side dishes planned, not to mention the cookies and the pies. It may just
be Chris, Dan and me this year; my older two babies aren’t here. For me
Thanksgiving is about feeding my babies and any other babies who may show up in
my life, no matter their age.
There’s always something to be thankful for; even it
seems like nothing. If you have a breath to take, hey, that’s something to be
thankful for. I bet you don’t have to look very far to find something for which
you feel gratitude. I know I don’t.
Peace be with you and thank you for the gift of you.
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