Tradition

It's almost Thanksgiving and under normal circumstances, I would be quite giddy.

However, this is the first year in about 20 that I won't be with my kids for this holiday. I would be lying if I said things like, "sands of time", "sunrise, sunset", "time marches on", blah, blah, blah.

It stinks. I would be o.k. with ignoring the whole thing. If I don't acknowledge it, it doesn't exist.

One tradition our family has that we've (my brother and I) written about before is our "Pie Night" tradition. I concocted this event where on Wednesday night before Thanksgiving, we all come together and eat some of the pie that will be served the next day. You're always so very full after the Thanksgiving meal, I thought it was proper to give the pie some special time of its own. We really enjoy a piece (or two) of these wonderful pies baked by various family members, and then enjoy them again the next day!

We all write down what we are particularly thankful for on 3X5 cards and then these cards are mixed up and read aloud. We try to guess who wrote the card that is being read. It's fun. It's sweet. It's often very touching. It gives us the opportunity to focus on the "Thanks" part of the holiday.

We have some very good friends in Nashville who will go to Abilene for their Thanksgiving. She is already there and he will be joining her in a couple of days. She's visiting her brother (a V.P. at ACU) and her Daddy. She loves my kids and has taken them under her wing for Thanksgiving.

I emailed her today to give her the kids email addresses and phone #'s so they could get the information they need to get together. She had already contacted them...already made them feel welcome, again.

So, I guess I won't worry. They will be having Thanksgiving at the V.P.'s home with people that love them like family.

And, this year, on my "thankful card", I will most definitely express my gratitude for the kingdom of God here on earth that has created eternal friendships that are just like family.

Blessings!