Filling the spaces

Yes, it's Thanksgiving and those of us lucky enough to be near family members are filling our plates and sharing the table with those we love, or at least those who tolerate us. I read a poem once that said "Home is where, when you go, they have to let you in." Something like that. It stuck with me because I think tolerance is a big part of the fabric of family love.

I made space in my apartment to have the kids over for turkey dinner. David, bless him, cooked the side dishes and I prepared the bird. It's been years since I roasted a turkey but it felt good on this day to be doing just that.

Sophie asked us to "hold hands" and, even though Hannah was the holdout, we managed to say grace and enjoy each other's company for a few, uninterrupted hours.

Hannah ran from the living room to the dining room and the neighbors downstairs knocked loudly on the ceiling. We couldn't believe it. A four-year-old running in her grandmother's house at 6pm on Thanksgiving Day is disturbing the peace? I was annoyed at first but then thought how sad that these two grumps were not eating Thanksgiving Dinner with their extended family (who live nearby). They had nothing better to do than bang on the ceiling and disturb another family's togetherness.

Sophie is sleeping over. She helped me clean up the kitchen and then got in her pajamas and we picked a fairytale from the Grandmom's Book which is next to my bed. She chose "Stone Soup". I think it was perfect for tonight. Sophie's a wise little girl. It's all about sharing and opening ourselves up to others.

I can't help but think of my mom. If a four-year-old child ran gleefully across the floor above her, she would have smiled, not knocked on the ceiling. Another reason to be thankful this day, I come from a family where hospitality was valued. There would not have been a need for stone soup in my mom's kitchen. All would have been shared, gladly. Cooking was a form of love.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who celebrates the day.