Thanksgiving 2008 has come and gone. Black Friday is in full gear as crazy people pack the malls to get super, super deals. There is risk of being trampled to death.
I know Chris and Shelby made a special effort to have her Mom and Dad for Thanksgiving. Sue (Shelby's Mom) has been struggling with crippling inflammation in her spine but she seems to be responding to new treatments. Every moment is special.
Debs cooked dinner for her and Tom's combined families. I know almost everything that Grasshopper No.1 prepared because there were many phone calls interpreting Mom's Cookbook.
Grasshopper No.5 was invited to her friends house for dinner. No.5 made the stuffing. There is a deep tradition including gizzards and hearts and hamburger and, and, and......! No stove top stuffing here. She also needed interpretation of "the" Cookbook.
And then there was our Thanksgiving. Nana chose to join us. Grasshoppers No.2 and No.4 joined in as well as Cousin Rick. There is always one poignant moment after the meal that everybody sits around the table and seem to let there defenses down and discussion reverts to "times gone past". Bitching is okay. Everyone is "fair game" in discussions. There is lots of laughter. Stories about deep dark secrets are common and nobody leaves the table in fear of missing something. Of course those that were not in attendance will never know what was revealed.
The Grandchildren of Grasshoppers No.2 and No.4 are pretty close in age. They play well together and fun was had by all. I am always amazed at how tall Grant gets. He has to be over 6 feet tall and is only 13. Maybe I'll be tall in my next life! Tall people seem to get special attention.
Your Mom outdid herself. She commited to baking everything this year. Those of you that prepare Thanksgiving meals, know the detail of being the host. Of course the meal was delicious and I'll get my "fair share" of the leftovers.
I will remember the Thanksgiving because I went down to Plymouth on Wednesday to pick up Nana. We began to reminise about Plymouth on the way home. We both forgot the name of the downtown butcher that cut everything fresh for your order. About an hour after being back in Appleton, of course Nana remembered it was "Schelpfeffer". Not bad for 97 years old. But then she recalled working at the Ben Franklin (five and dime) store across the street from the City Club. She had applied for a Christmas holiday job as a sales clerk. She said the stack of applicants was very high (some things don't change). When she followed up on the job, John Scanlan (there is a name from the past) gave her the part time job. The job would continue for several years in addition to her other two jobs. Let me see! She was holding down 3 jobs and being a Mom too! Her wages (which amazingly she remembered without hesitation) were $.50 per hour. Imagine that!
Thanksgiving has come and gone. It brings all the emotions from eating too much to becoming aware that Christmas is not far away.
So from me to you, a Belated Happy Thanksgiving. Stay warm.
Love,
Dad