I love Thanksgiving. It is my third favorite holiday after Christmas and Halloween. It's probably our second best family holiday. (My family really loves Christmas.) I love the family. I love the food. I love the togetherness of it all. Thanksgiving is a happy time.
Flashback to 2005 and Thanksgiving wasn't so happy.
My grandfather had just passed away four days before Thanksgiving. It was expected, but it didn't lessen the loss for my family. Everyone was sad and depressed that Thanksgiving. While I was sad, I was secretly thankful for the death of my grandfather. He had been suffering for years with an illness that couldn't be cured. He'd already outlived the doctors' expectations by months. In the end, he suffered and hurt and I was thankful that it had stopped.
Today Thanksgiving is still our second best family holiday. We still laugh, have fun, and eat until we explode, but the table is quiter. My grandfather isn't at the end of the table laughing, joking, or trying to steal my dessert. While I miss that terribly, I'm still thankful he's at peace.
Whether your Thanksgiving is happy or sad this year, I wish you the best. Happy Thanksgiving... and remember to give thanks.
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