Today I cooked several of our family favorite "Thanksgiving dishes." I look forward to this time each year; even though cooking ranks low on my list of favorite to do's! But, as we gather in the kitchen: myself, Bill and our daughters, and whomever else is visiting, the camaraderie and the sense of oneness that happens almost makes the pile of dishes worth it.
Tonight we will eat brown rice and drink green tea for dinner. We will skip the pie social after the Thanksgiving Eve service as we identify for one night with those who go to bed hungry around the world. It also makes the turkey all the more appealing on Thanksgiving.
These are two of my favorite traditions that is build on thanks~giving.
What are some of your favorite Thanksgiving traditions? I'd love to hear about them!
6 comments:
One thing I like to do is make the soup immediately after the dinner. We'd clean off the bird. Put the bones in a pot and start cookin' the soup.
Visiting family out of state. I like the drum sticks best and fight off my brothers for one.
Sorry Tamara, 'appreciate your compassion for world hunger, but we're not with you on skipping the pie! Growing up the Thanksgiving Eve Pie Service was my favorite service of the year, second only to Palm Sunday. Even as adults in our church in California I loved hearing the stories of what people were thankful for - and of course there would be pie. It has been nice for us moving to Washington that Pine Lake has the same tradition.
My favorite Thanksgiving tradition is givng thanks around the table for the simple, beautiful and exciting things God gives us daily: hugs from my kids, my husbands childlike humor, my dogs wagging tail, the quiet of the moring, a choatic day, the frost on the grass and rooftops, learning something new, a smile from a stranger... What are you thankful for? Will you share it at your table today?
From my earliest years, I remember my mom and dad inviting people who could not travel home for the holidays or who had no other family, to our home to celebrate with us. There was always enough love and food and joy to go around. When I grew older, I continued to same tradition with my own family; and when she was in college, our daughter began inviting friends-too-far-from-home to our home for the holidays. We always had a large gathering of people (singles, or stranded students or childless couples who were not able to travel to be with family - or who had no family). Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, became traditional "invite" holidays and were filled with such joy as we'd accept crowds of lonely friends into our home for the holidays. We became their family and they became ours. The joy that our friends brought into our home and into our hearts from holidays past and present, still sings in our hearts today. This Thanksgiving Day, we celebrate the gift of family and friends and we are most thankful for that incredible family tradition that showed us just how big God made our hearts.
One new old family tradition started a few years back when Andrew, my oldest, helped me make the pumpkin pies. I made the crusts while he mixed the spices into the filling. He latched upon this as a family tradition which he jealously protects every holiday season; Dad and he make the pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving.
I am thankful for the new things that God is doing in my life and the new and old traditions that help make new path seem safe and familiar.
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