Happy Thanksgiving

I'm sliding this post in under the wire because our Thanksgiving guests just left. I'm doubtful anyone will even read it at this point but, when NaBloPoMo calls, I must answer. You are all probably immobilized by tryptophan at this point. Unless you are a vegetarian or a vegan - then, you're probably running in circles around your friends and family members who have passed out in a turkey eatin' pile on the floor. I actually had to pull myself up from the floor and into a chair in order to type this. What a sacrifice! My childhood memories of Thanksgiving are rather vague. I kinda remember turkey and mashed potatoes. I definitely remember that we had that jellied cranberry stuff that slides out of the can and retains it's can-like shape. We also always had a "veggie tray" though I'm not sure pitted black olives and sweet gherkins really count as veggies. More than anything, I remember my loud family and laughter. Sometimes, things would devolve into a few rounds of leg wrestling between my mother and her sisters or a particularly wild game of spoons. For me, Thanksgiving is and has always been about the people.

Today, we had an amazing meal: herb roasted turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and gravy, a beautiful green salad, brussel sprouts and chestnuts, squash, chestnut stuffing and pumpkin and apple pies. We also had some great Portuguese wine. I know that the specifics of the meal will be lost with time but the memories of time spent with good friends and my own wacky little family will endure. For that, I am incredibly thankful.

I'm not always sure why I write or why anyone reads them but I know that this process has changed me for the better. So, I'm thankful for all of you who come here and read and talk back to me. I mean it - it's not just the wine talking.

Now, I should help Luisa with the dishes. Happy Thanksgiving!