The Giving Season

Thanksgiving Day, 2013

Last night, as we were falling asleep, my husband asked me why I like Thanksgiving so much. "Is it because your mom liked Thanksgiving?"

We haven't talked like this in awhile. We used to explore each other's minds in the late dark hours before sleep, to better know where we aligned and where we diverged on life's philosophies.

"Not exactly," I replied.

I like Thanksgiving because even when it was just my mother and me (which it almost always was), even when money was tight and even if in my young adult years we hadn't been getting along as well as we used to, my mother and I following her example paused to make Thanksgiving special. We took time out to celebrate each other and our family, however slight it was. And it wasn't about the food, but we just enjoyed taking time to build something together and then we'd sit down, enjoy the meal, put on one of our favorite movies and decorate the tree.

"And I guess that's what it really comes down to for me. Thanksgiving, for me, is the start of celebrating Christmas. And everybody loves Christmas."