Samain and the Moon of Growing Darkness
Thanksgiving: Aunt Marjorie. Uncle Ike. Many Thanksgivings at their house. All my relations. A Lakota phrase referring to Mother Earth, Great Sol, and all the other parts of creation on which humans depend. The Rocky Mountains. The Weather. Water in the Aquifer. Wild Neighbors. Arapaho National Forest. All Forests. The Atmosphere. Shadow Mountain Home.
Sparks of Joy and Awe: Ruth and Gabe
Kavannah: Perseverance and chesed
One brief shining: Remembering Thanksgiving’s past and those who will be missed at the table today: Kate and Jon, my Son and Seoah, dogs circling the table hoping for a dropped piece of, well, anything, a happy babble of conversation rising and falling, the clink of serving spoons lifting mashed potatoes, stuffing, another slice of a tenderloin roast, the room smelling rich with the perfume of meat, Potatoes, Cranberries, Coffee and Wine.
And here we go. With Thanksgiving the pace of Holiseason picks up. December hoards the richest trove: Advent, Posada, Hanukah, Christmas, the Winter Solstice, Yule, Kwanza, and the transition to a new year.
Kate and I used to cook Thanksgiving dinners, then I did. For three years we bought Thanksgiving sides from Tony’s Market in Littleton and I made a tenderloin roast. Now I prefer to go to a restaurant. Last year at the Urban Farmer a stranger bought my meal for me. And not a cheap meal at that.
Today Ruth, Gabe, Jen, and I will eat at the Water Grill. They have a traditional Thanksgiving menu and their usual menu. Think I’m going to have Spiny Lobster with at least a half dozen Oysters, a salad. Perhaps crispy polenta. Maybe a Bluefin Toro Tartare. As well as the bill, of course. Grandpop’s treat.
We’re headed there because Ruth is a pescatarian. Think I will be, too, this Thanksgiving only.
Buddy Tom will share Thanksgiving with Roxann and Jessica at the Trillium in Mendocino, a favorite R&R spot for them. Roxann celebrates her 75th tomorrow at another of their favorites, Café Beaujolais.
Wherever and whoever you are: a Jesuit nun who was my first spiritual director told that me that gratitude was enough. Just enough. A thought for Thanksgiving.
Just a moment: Record Snow fall in Seoul, Songtan. Seoah ran in the Turkey Trot, fashionably attired in the best running wear. My son bought two Turkeys and will roast them for his squadron, also inviting their Korean counterparts to this American holiday meal. I wish they were here or I was there.
I’m thankful for our divided nation. From Sea to shining Sea. Alaska and Hawai’i, too. For all those who serve it in uniform and all those who would, in spite of our troubles, yearn to live here. Immigration is NOT a bug. It’s a feature. Ask farmers in Texas and the Central Valley.
Been watching a few episodes of Hawai’i 5-0. Kicks up the Hawai’i motivation I had a couple of years ago. Maybe Seoah and my son will retire there and I’ll finally end up there. Though I love the Rockies, I love Hawai’i, too.
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