Our Thanksgiving was a little different this year.
My sister and family were spending the holiday with her in-laws. My brother and family live in San Diego now. My single cousin Clee, who usually spends holidays with us, was with her brother’s family.
So, our guest list would simply be: my mother and her friend, Marlene. Marlene is a dear widow who is legally blind. She is a classy dresser who wears red-rimmed cat-eye glasses.
In addition to the sparse guest list, we threw another curve ball when we told the children,
“This is a Do-It-Yourself Thanksgiving. You can all plan one dish, buy the ingredients and prepare it yourself.”
Then, our oldest daughter mentioned that a Facebook acquaintance was in the area for Thanksgiving weekend: Nathan, a seminary grad student from Sri Lanka.
When my daughter asked if he could join us for Thanksgiving dinner, some of the other children seemed dubious…even shocked.
I regret to admit they said things like:
- We don’t even know him.
- He could be a weirdo.
- Why would we invite someone we’ve never met?
So much for the Christian spirit of hospitality.
In the end, we all had a marvelous time:
- Marlene and mom were excellent company and formidable game-players. We learned new things about both of them.
- Everyone stepped up with the DIY dishes; we had abundant leftovers, as usual.
- Nathan was friendly, intelligent and a definite non-weirdo. (If he’s writing a blog, I wonder what his prediction and assessment of us would be?)
So, I am thankful for uncertain opportunities, new friends, and rich experiences that help us grow!
I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving. I wonder how you spent it?
(c) Lisa M. Luciano
Photo Credit: Zbysiu Rodak
Indubitably, you had a wonderful Thanksgiving (even without Leigh). It was nice that your children got to experience the “discomfort” of a stranger. I was always one of those kids who would rather spend time with my known people rather than new people. I got over it 🙂
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Haha….thanks for the comment 🙂
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Cheers to your invitation because that’s a great spirit of Thanksgiving.
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Thanks…we’re learning 😀
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