Thanksgiving

We 3 C's mulled over some ideas for our Thanksgiving Feast this year. Our Larder was full. Our Repertoire for cooking Dishes for a Feast was bountiful too. Home always seemed best for Holidays, yet this year's circumstances were different.

Since we moved to Butterfly Hill Farm, Mother had joined us for our Thanksgiving Meal each of the last 2 years. Ever the Cook and always generous, she brought 3-4 dishes to share, spending the preceding days in special preparation.

Her current situation in the Nursing Home rendered obsolete plans from previous years. So we sat with the current situation and let a solution unfold. At the top of our thinking was the deep knowing that it is a miracle she is here and we can savor every morsel of shared time. Plus, we face the reality that the time will come when she is no longer present in our lives in ways we have known and loved. We have much to be Thankful for. So what should we do about Thanksgiving Dinner? What would be special for her and for us?

We decided we would fix the Thanksgiving Feast at home and then take it to share with Mother in the Nursing Home. Mother didn't want us to go to any trouble, but she was clearly excited about the idea. So were we. The Nursing Home set up a table just for us.

Our Thanksgiving Menu consisted of: Roast Chicken with Bread/Wild Rice Dressing, Mashed White Root Veggies (Celeriac, Rutabaga, Parsnips), Gravy, Green Beans, Indian Pudding, Cranberry Sauce, and Pumpkin/Squash Pie. It was fabulous. Everything was homemade, organic, and almost all was from this Little Farm. We kept it pretty simple.

Just before we began the Meal, I asked Mother to offer the Blessing, which she did. Oh, how I have missed her special prayers as we have begun our shared meals.

When I think of this special Meal and the out of the ordinary preparations to bring it to her, I am reminded of all the Picnic Dinners of my Childhood. Mother would prepare special meals and then pack them up to wherever was our destination. The fixin's were sometimes simple, other times elaborate on a scale of today's fast food. This was a Thanksgiving Picnic which was just as special as it gets.

The 3 C's send our best wishes that your Festivities were just what you needed in the Spirit of this Day. We are deeply grateful for the abundance in our Lives: Food, Family, Friends, Creation, Fellow Travelers along the Path.