Like most people, I've had a tortured history with holidays -- the memories both sweet and painful, feeling their draw or bristling with all the personal buttons they can push. I think Thanksgiving 2006 with its gentle and profound simplicity will stay with me for a long time.
The weather was crisp and clear, perfect for the long walk along the beach -- from Rio Del Mar to Pajaro Dunes and back -- that I took in the morning with Gwen, Alex and Lauren.
We had several invitations for dinner and planned to do a tour of the various potlucks, but we wound up staying at one friend's house. With the table laden with all the usual dishes, we started the meal with one of my family's long traditions -- going around the table and each person telling something they are thankful for.
Lord knows, each one of us there had something NOT to be thankful for. One friend lost both of her parents this year. Another has been battling metastasized breast cancer. Another woman just moved out of her home and is reeling from the end of her 20-year marriage. But as I listened, I was so moved by each deeply felt expression of gratitude. My sick friend's thankfulness for enough health to allow her to eat this meal. Appreciation for the beautiful town we live in. For old friends and new ones. For airplanes that bring us home. For the three kinds of cranberry sauce available that night.
For me, my daughter Gwen made the most poignant comment of all. She said something like, "I'm thankful to be having Thanksgiving dinner with people who know how to be thankful."
Amen.
This is a picture of the gorgeous persimmon tree that I can see from my deck -- for which I am grateful.
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