Thanksgiving 2012: Learning Flexability

We celebrated our National Day of Thanksgiving last week.  Thanksgiving has become my favorite holiday.  My wife might differ since she is the one who does the cooking, but for me it's a relaxing time with family.  There are not a lot of decorations to put up, and no gifts to be bought.  I don't recall ever sending out Thanksgiving cards.  My tasks are simple: get the house cleaned, make sure all the leaves are in the dinning room table and then carve up the turkey once the family arrives.  Our family celebration of Thanksgiving has become a twenty-four hour event.  We spend time playing board games with the kids, playing football in the backyard and those who wish to participate in some Black Friday shopping.

We faced a dilemma this year, however.  This was the first Thanksgiving that all our our children are married.  We learned early on that our daughter, Katie, and husband John were going to be in Houston with his family Thanksgiving Day.  Our youngest son, Mark and his new bride, Kristen, were going to Georgetown, Texas to be with her parents.  With the two youngest siblings gone, our oldest son, Peter, and his family decided they would spend the day with Amy's family in Whitesboro, Texas.  As a result we were faced with having to spend Thanksgiving Day in our empty nest.

There was some despair once we realized our traditional schedule was in jeopardy, but I was confident that our kids would work in time with mom and dad.   First-off my wife might put on the the best Thanksgiving Feast in  the south and no one wants to miss out.  Secondly, they enjoy time together.  Instead of fretting, I waited until they worked out the schedule between themselves, and indeed they did.  The kids started drifting in Friday afternoon and Barb had the traditional dinner ready for 5:00 PM.  It even extended into Saturday.  Everyone was here for breakfast and more fellowship.  They even took time to help me with chores: raking leaves, hanging the Christmas light and cleaning out the chimney.

One of the things that I am learning in my old age is flexibility.  There are no longer any "givens" and all things are in a state of change.  Secondly, if you love your kids unconditionally and provide a place of refuge and relaxation they will always find their way back home.  

By the way, they even watch out for us: Our daughter-in-law Amy invited us to join her family 's Thanksgiving celebration in Whitesboro.  In the process we discovered another family that shares the same faith and values.