Eight days and counting. Counting down to the day when most people across the land will be sitting in a home, surrounded by people they love and some that are a little harder than others to love. Of course none of us reading this are “the hard ones to love”! Right? Or are we? After a dinner conversation last evening with three other couples who we love so dearly, I began to question how easy or hard I am to love. One of our table-mates began telling us of a family member who had not spoken to anyone in their family in 4 years. They were preparing to have a early Thanksgiving dinner with Mr Unlovable and the entire family next week. An event they were not looking forward to. As I sat there and listened and laughed at some of the conversation regarding how that dinner might end, I reflected on some of my past Thanksgivings. I remember some years feeling angry that the people coming to our house for Thanksgiving weren’t the ones I would have chosen to be with. That let down feeling when I would uncover a casserole and wasn’t up to my standards of what I thought a sweet potato casserole should be. The time one person refused to be in the family photo because they didn’t like to have their picture taken. Or maybe certain folks didn’t stay as long or too long. Why didn’t some friends make their kids behave around the table?
All these memories began to flood my mind last night. It was then that I remembered how I reacted to what now seeks so petty. I certainly am not proud of some of my reactions and probably made me one of those “hard to love” types!
We are now years down the road and hopefully have matured in that the things that seemed, at the time so important , just doesn’t seem important anymore. What is important to me now is making memories with people, family and friends that make up our world. We have learned that sometimes the memories that used to cause tension or stress are sometimes the memories that give us laughter down the road.
So bring on the canned green beans, or the burned sweet potato casserole. Stay till midnight…whatever! We are ready and just so grateful to the Lord for His blessings and goodness. That He has blessed us with a family who we truly love and enjoy being with. Friends who fill our lives with so much joy that we are a very blessed people.
Have a very blessed and memorable Thanksgiving…
Chocolate Castles as wel 