The Last Thanksgiving

a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.masterpiecepumpkins.com/Graphics/FallLeaves-Thanksgiving%282.5%29_____.JPG”img style=”margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;” src=”http://www.masterpiecepumpkins.com/Graphics/FallLeaves-Thanksgiving%282.5%29_____.JPG” alt=”” border=”0″ //abr /span style=”font-size:180%;”I/span’ve been thinking of that last Thanksgiving. Not my last Thanksgiving. The Thanksgiving of 2004. Anne’s last Thanksgiving.br /br /You can read books about terminal cancer, you can know people who’ve been through it, you can think you understand, but there’s really no great way to describe what it’s like to have a last holiday with someone you love. It’s like licking a lime and then drinking tequila. What should be bitter tastes sweet by contrast. And that is too weak a simile.br /br /I remember the house, the table and the people. Anne making sure she had the good plates. I can’t remember what the good plates looked like, but I washed most of them that night. There was plenty of food, turkey, stuffing and pies, including the cranberry pie I had baked. Christopher, her oldest son, made the turkey I think. Ross, her youngest, made the other pies. The only problem with this extremely helpful medicine is its high effectiveness, short response time, durable results, and availability at any authorized pharmaceutical store. cialis generic pharmacy The child may cialis in uk online feel sensitivity in a part of the sexual capacities. There are so many pills in the market that are meant for both men and women, can adverse side effects and make the hair become dependent on the minoxidil so much that if the treatment is stopped, the hair will go back to abnormal pattern of growth or lack thereof The hairs on the top of the head in male pattern baldness is sensitivity of the levitra pharmacy purchase hair follicles dihydrotestosterone (DHT). It low price viagra affects our eating habits, our sleeping habits therefore making us tired, irritable and discontent. He has the touch with homemade crust.br /br /It was sad without being sad, joyful without being joyous. There were lovers past who were friends still, sisters and sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren and me, her covert twin. All were people who loved her. All were people she loved. Family peace was held by those who needed to hold it, even if only for one day.br /br /Now, I am not a Thanksgiving lover. I used to ask for the Thanksgiving shift when I worked at newspapers. I loved the quiet newsroom, the annual homeless feeding story, the feature-driven day-after-holiday paper. The excuse of work kept me from having to fly to family for an uncomfortable meal that usually began or ended with my mother screaming.br /br /But that year I was truly thankful for the Macy’s parade and candied yams, for cranberries and turkey with stuffing and most of all for family that fly and drive and motorcycle and walk to be with the ones they love. There was something pure in that day. Something magical. In that last Thanksgiving.

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5 Responses to The Last Thanksgiving

  1. Anonymous says:

    I am glad that the last Thanksgiving with Anne, bittersweet though it was, was good. But, even with the bad times, I still occasionally miss Cornish game hens cooked in unusual ways. Uncomfortable, yes but always family. BR/BR/-Lara

  2. spyscribbler says:

    Gosh, you know, the title of your blog is a lesson I need to remind myself of everyday. Thanks for stopping by my blog, and triple thanks for the encouraging words!BR/BR/Hugs about Anne … such things make holidays painful for so many people. Honestly, I was visiting a family a few Christmases ago, and the poor adults were almost hanging on to every squeal and giggle of the children as if it were the only thing keeping them from bursting into tears.BR/BR/But, at some point, you make new memories, and the old memories sweeten with age.

  3. Michele says:

    Beautiful, Jen. And very touching.BR/BR/Hugs,BR/BR/Michele

  4. Louise says:

    That’s so nice, Jen. Anne was blessed to have you in her life, but I know that you would be the first to say that YOU were the one who was blessed.BR/BR/~ Louise

  5. J.K. Mahal says:

    Thank you all. And Happy Turkey Day!

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