You know what is the second best thing about Thanksgiving ?

Left- overs !

Call me crazy, but having a pile of turkey meat and a vat of gravy sitting in the refrigerator th day after Thanksgiving makes me a happy woman. Some panic at the thought of the leftovers, but not me. It means turkey sandwiches, turkey and biscuits, turkey ala king, turkey fajitas and numerous little sneaky nibbles of bird between meals. As a kid this was one of the best things about the day after Thanksgiving the years my mom cooked the meal. Still rings true for me today.

I grew up as the oldest of 5, with 10 cousins and 26 great aunts and uncles who lived geographically close. Every holiday till I was about 12 , the clan would gather and my grandmother’s house for the meal, It was a special occasion- the doors would get removed from the hinges, placed on sawhorses, draped with tablecloths and set with her china and silverwear. The tables were graced with relish trays containing black olives, green olives, celery stuffed with cream cheese and pineapples, assorted pickles and spiced cranberry and apple rings. The meal was always the same- turkey, 3 kinds of stuffing, mashed potatoes, broccoli , turnips, parsnips, gravy and rolls. Gram would make 2 turkeys – one in the oven and another on a rotisserie on the porch.. It was crowded, filled with a thousand conversations. There was always at least 3 cousins who would play with you, a great uncle who would tell you a story and at least 3 great aunts who commented on “what a young lady you are getting to be”.  These things were the undiscovered treasures of my childhood.

I say undiscovered because I grew up with the belief that everyone gathered with his or her whole clan on a very regular basis, had an actual relationship with their great grandparents and had reason to know what a second cousin or first cousin once removed actually meant. Years later, when I was engaged to my husband, I got to see a very different picture of the holiday. Separated by half a country paints an entirely different Thanksgiving reality. To borrow a much said phrase “had I known then what I know now”, I would have paid more attention. I would have listened more closely to the stories. I would have asked more questions. I would have burned those wonderful images in my brain a little better.

The cycle seems to be coming around again. This time I am the Great aunt and my mom is the Great Grandmother. We will gather at her house this year, for the traditional turkey, stuffing, turnips and more. Mo formal table setting, but buffet style instead. 35 people in a 3 bedroom single level ranch house of 1,000 sq ft does not leave room for tables. On Sunday, I will make a turkey here strictly to have the leftovers- the second best thing about Thanksgiving!

So what then do I consider the first best thing? Family. Be they friendly, frightening, silly, strict or aggravating, they are yours and you are theirs. Who you are is in part because of whom they are, and like it or not you need each other.  So while we pause to say thank you for all of the bounty we have been given, take a moment to say thanks for the bounty that you came from- your family of origin. I don’t think we see their true worth until they are gone.

Posted by WisdomBuilders

I thouroughly enjoyed reading your blog entry! I could just picture how it must have been. Thank you for posting it. I wish more thanksgivings were more like yours was. We go house-hopping on our holidays because there are so many family and they don't all eat together. (Two different families--not that their fueding or anything).

Posted by Dot

I also could picture the big family get togethers that you talked about. It is so nice to hear of big gathers like that.