Sunday, November 24, 2013

Interpreting Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action. 

W. J. Cameron

I had lunch with a good friend the other day. We ate at a lovely little bistro - sat in a back corner so we could talk and not be overrun by all the conversations buzzing in the restaurant.  As always when we meet for lunch, the time flies and in between all the discussions of writing, books, New York City, aches and pains, art and hibernation, two hours have passed. Once again, we are the only ones left in the restaurant other than the wait staff. 

The quote above arrived with the check -- written on a small slip like those found in a fortune cookie, minus the lottery numbers. My friend scooped it up and said, "I'm posting this on Facebook." 

If she hadn't done that, and I hadn't seen it on Facebook later in the day, I might never have remembered the quote. Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving. A word of action. Several ways that could be interpreted. 

Of course, my first thought of it as a word of action is all my action in the kitchen putting that huge dinner on every year. The planning, the purchasing, the cleaning, the table setting. The pie making and potato peeling. The bread spread over the counter to dry for the stuffing. The celery and onions chopped into small pieces. The cream ready for whipping. 

With all that work, I've seldom thought about exactly what the holiday meant. Certainly I am thankful for what I have. My family. My friends. The gathering. The day. The fact that it is my favorite holiday because all you have to do is cook and eat.

I am a grateful person. I write gratitudes often. Perhaps as with most things I now encounter as I grow supposedly older and wiser, I notice what I haven't noticed before. Thanksgiving - a word of action. Thanksgiving. Giving thanks. Thanking those that make a difference. Having great respect for those that give. Giving thanks for the gifts that others give - even though they may not know that what they give is appreciated. Relaying my thanks.

As always, I'm not certain of my interpretation. The quote most likely offers something much deeper than my analysis. But I do know I'm actively thankful for many, many, many people, places and  things. With deep gratitude, I thank another dear friend, Kris, who is hosting Thanksgiving this year.  So thankful am I for inviting me that I will bring the pumpkin and buttermilk pies. And a salad. And a vegetable. And rolls. And wine. And my husband and one of my sons and his girlfriend. 

I'll bring joy to the gathering. I'll relish the time we will have as three families most familiar with one another flock together and share a meal. Share a Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving - a joy to act upon. 


 Happy Thanksgiving everyone!


15 comments:

  1. Lovely sentiments here. I hope you and yours have a wonderful holiday.

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  2. thanks for a thought-provoking post. blessings to you and yours, always.

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  3. I think I heard this on the old Oprah show, we never have had cable and so glad for that! "If I ever say anything else but Thank you it will enough" my feelings exactly..Lost my Mom when I was a wee one, never understood others who hated their moms and dads..My dad was missing in action in our lives, I only had my grandmother who lived far away & was older, but I finally got to be with her and she only lived for about 2 & 1/2 years but lived she did and what a time we had..She passed from my life before she could see me accomplish many things, college, marriage and motherhoord late, she never knew her granddaughter my only child, but guess what she is the spitting image of her and has her mannerisms & fancies herself just like she did, oh, my she is with me ever still with my daughter, even has her eye shape, color and blonde blonde hair, just like her, a real woman..She was obstreperous for most of her life and talk, mostly she was my favorite human being in all of this world, I like to think God & Karma gave me little princess yes her name is Sara and princess she is..to try to mend my whole in my heart over the loss of my Mother and my beloved Grandmother, thankfulness for my husband of nearly 40 years and our sweet angel of a princess who to me is almost the reincarnation of her Great Grandmother..thankfulness is my prayer each and everyday, we are all children of God, we must love and be at peace with each other.ciao, oh, happy Hanukkah on turkey day the first evening..ciao & love & thankfulnessX()X()X()X()

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  4. I meant to say Great Grand daughter, she would adore her since their birthdays were close my only on nov.3 and my grandmother her great grandmother was at the very end of November but I know she would adore her, they think alike laugh alike and oh, what tempers, but underneath are sentimental to a fault, kind and brave and oh what lookers, many pursued my GrandMother after she became a widow young, she never remarried but the men would come a calling, she was such a interesting woman who commanded and got respect..just like our only child our princess, but alas my GrandMother was alone in her last years save me her very favorite and my only is alone happily, she just doesn't put up with much and is intellectual and busy all the time just my GrandMother was and liked to read and read, she was so smart and could cook anything just like our darling angel of a daughter can, but PARTICULAR, so PARTICULAR...Hoping you have many many things to be thankful for and lots of love to which to me what one really needs like the beatles would sing..All you need is LOVE, that is the truth, ciaoXXXX()()()()

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  5. Loved this. Thanks for stopping by my blog, and for your kind words.

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  6. What a great tribute to Thanksgiving. It is an action word and that is the more important part of the holiday. Not what happens to us, but what we do for others!

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  7. Well said. Thank you for this quiet reflection.

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  8. And happy Thanksgiving to you. What an interesting quote.

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  9. The being/doing conundrum strikes again. It is probably not enough to simply BE grateful. We need to rouse ourselves to offer thanks. Perhaps if we are truly thankful, it is a natural response? Hmmmm. . . Enjoy your Thanksgiving, whether you solve this little riddle or not!

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  10. A beautiful post - thank you and Happy Thanksgiving!

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  11. Very lovely...and a blessed Thanksgiving to you too! I'm so glad that you are back to blogging again.

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  12. I do have to remind myself to be thankful and to give thanks. The more I verbalize gratitude, the more aware I am of my blessings, and the happier I seem to be. Thanks for a thoughtful post!

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  13. excellent quote and this week I've been thinking (probably too much) on how "wait" is a verb.
    Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

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  14. Hope your holiday is nice.

    On a natural resources sight I posted a few deer shots and one of the comments was BAM!LOL

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  15. As I read some of the comments here, I realize how infectious Thanksgiving can be. And here, it all started with a note left on the table; the other path being fb via your friend.

    Your three family dinner sounds wonderful.

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