November 27, 2024
Despite the persistent effects of nostalgic Thanksgiving films, stories, pictures, and memories, Thanksgiving is a remarkably adaptive holiday.
While many will prepare a turkey for the main dish this week, a good number will prepare something completely different, something that better matches their preferences to their gratitude. Even those serving turkey have scoured the media, the Internet, and their cookbook shelves for a new way to prepare it. We may giggle at the idea of a turkey stuffed with a chicken stuffed with a duck, but doesn’t it illustrate our flexibility around that iconic dish?
As a child, Thanksgiving was a meal we celebrated with Gramma Anderson, mostly at her house in western Massachusetts. We weren’t always there, even if she did have a dining room that best matched the front of a holiday card. My parents hosted everyone a few times, as did my aunts and uncles.
As an adult, Thanksgiving gatherings grew substantially. In addition to blood family, dear friends began to join the celebration. We added a “Thanksgiving Day Croquet Tournament” which took place between dinner and dessert. My parents were the regular hosts for quite some time as they had a dining area big enough for everyone (we borrowed tables and chairs).
Then they shrank again as people graduated, moved, and passed on.
The consistent things about Thanksgiving throughout have been love and gratitude. The locations have changed, the faces have changed, but the love and gratitude have been the same.
May they be a part of your Thanksgiving celebration this week and every year.
In peace,
Pastor Eric
