Sunday, November 30, 2008

Thanksgiving reflections

Although perhaps not quite as unhappy as last year's Thanksgiving, this year's holiday was certainly bittersweet and awkward, given the fact that Lori's mom, as well as other relatives on her side of the family, are no longer with us. As such, our Thanksgiving Day gathering was purposefully subdued, consisting of only a handful of people besides Lori, her brother, Kirby and myself. We still managed to put out a pretty decent spread, however, and the Thanksgiving Day feast was followed up by my traditional pot of day-after-Thanksgiving turkey bone gumbo.

I don't want to sound too sentimental here, but these deaths have given a deeper meaning to Thanksgiving: that there truly is a reason to be thankful for your friends or family, because they can leave us at any time. If somebody would have told me two Thanksgivings ago that three people who were with us at my parent's house that day - Lori's mother, my uncle Glen and my cousin Evelyn - would not be with us two years later, that day would have certainly taken on a different meaning for me.

Life is short. We are not guaranteed time with our loved ones. Be thankful for the time you're given with them.

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