A Post-Thanksgiving Post

Thanksgiving means so many things to me…
A day of baking pies, the smell of turkey cooking…
Gathering with family, the table set in anticipation of the feast.




Some of our Thanksgiving pennies scattered on the tables…


But all these things are really just reminders, symbols, of the abundance we enjoy.
Life, health, opportunity, freedom, sacrifice, and people.

It’s wonderful to have people you love gathered in your home.  My husband’s brother and his family joined us.


And his  sister and her family came from San Diego to be with us.


It was a wonderful, enjoyable day, complete with the sounds of happy children playing after the meal.

I must say, though, that there is one more thing that Thanksgiving means to me:
Turkey sandwiches!


The day after Thanksgiving, at our house, is not about Black Friday but about enjoying the lingering feeling of the holiday.  Turkey sandwiches are the best!

The long list of preparations prevented me from posting in advance about the blessings I am thankful for.
This is probably just as well, because I’d have to revise my list anyway.

Today, hot water tops my list of things I’m thankful for.
Sometime during the evening of Thanksgiving, the thermostat on our water heater decided to quit.
Don’t worry, the manufacturer said.  It’s under warranty, we’ll overnight you a new one…..

on MONDAY!

Hmmmm.  That means we receive it on Tuesday.  It adds up to at least five days without hot water.
Yesterday when I took a 2.5 minute shower and my feet were numb from standing in the ice cold water, I realized that I’ve never been so thankful for the blessing of hot water.

Today we’re getting smarter.  Boiling water on the stove, carrying pots upstairs to mix with the freezing water from the faucet… you get the picture.

I’ll tell you what YOU can be thankful for:  that you’re not the one trying to bathe 8 children for Church in the morning!
(We’ll just say it’s been interesting.)  We’re thankful for electricity and  a furnace that hasn’t quit on us as well!

Veteran’s Day

As I was driving past our city cemetery, there was a little golden spot in the middle of all the green.  It touched my heart so much that I went home to get my camera and drive back.  While all the other trees had shed their leaves, two had saved their golden blanket for today.
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So beautiful!
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I have always found cemeteries to be very restful, reverent places.
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Today there was something lovely about a freshly fallen blanket of golden leaves, undisturbed.
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It beckoned me to visit, to sit and stay a while.
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Wandering through the cemetery, seeing monuments to lives lived and gone, I remember.
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I remember that so much of what we worry about doesn’t really matter.
That people are what matter most.
That we give our lives in more than death, that we give our lives by how we spend our time, who we serve.
That people I have never met have given life (both in death and in years) that I might live and have the opportunity to choose how to spend my time, choose who to serve, choose to remember… or not.

Today is Veteran’s Day, the day we honor those who have served in our armed forces and are still with us.
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Those who were not called to make the ultimate sacrifice.
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I am grateful for them.  I think a lot about the WWII generation and how much they have to offer.   Among them is my grandfather, now in his 89th year.

To my children he is Great Grandpa, who we visit every summer (even when I’m pregnant).
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As a young man, he served in the Navy.  He was the navigator on a Kingfisher plane.
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I grew up hearing the story of the Battle of the Truk Islands and the role he played.
I’m grateful for his example and for his military service.
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I tried to call him today to thank him for his service.  In the end,  I had to leave a message.
In this Thanksgiving season, I suppose it’s appropriate to offer thanks to our veterans.
Who can you thank?

Jennifer

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