Today will be the largest dinner I've hosted yet: Including my sons and little nephews, we'll have 18 for Thanksgiving! Two of the nephews don't have enough teeth for turkey, but I'm still roasting 33 pounds for the rest of us (12.5 lbs went through the oven yesterday; the other 20.5 get going in an hour).
This year has the extra-special added element of an overseas visit from my sister Kay's family, who we haven't seen for two years. And the extra-extra special part of their visit is that now they have Baby C...who I've been longing to meet since his birth 10 months ago! Kisses over video chat just aren't the same thing as mooshing on plump cheeks in person. Today will be the first time all five cousins--my two boys, Claire's two boys, and Kay's--will be together. This Auntie is beside herself anticipating all those fuzzy heads whooping, crawling, or drooling all over her house. It will also be such a joy to see my Dad with his grandsons inevitably piled all over him.
But on that note, there is also inevitable sadness because my Mom isn't here to see and know her grandchildren. G is the only one who remembers her--and it's hazy at that, since he was only three and a half years old when she died--and she never got to meet the youngest three boys. Holidays are full of mixed emotions anyway, especially for this tradition-oriented family. We did things basically the same way every year, from the location to the food, and it's been a slow grief process to gradually form new traditions.
Some of our traditions have remained, however--like having our big dinner at noon and enjoying leftovers and pie for supper--and since this is Kay's first American Thanksgiving in six years, we're leaning on our traditional growing-up foods, too: Turkey with from-scratch bread stuffing, Boston brown bread, steamed green beans with slivered almonds and sour cream, red garnet yams with butter, mashed potatoes and gravy, jellied cranberry sauce (no whole cranberries allowed; my mom tried to introduce that but there weren't enough takers), and six different pies.
Not that different from many other Americans' Day of Thanks fare, but these particular dishes taste like home to us siblings...and I am so thankful for home--for the loving home I grew up in, for the welcoming home I have now, and for the eternal Home my mom has already gotten to. In some ways, no matter what the joy or sadness, with my Heavenly Father at my side I'm always home. Wherever you are today, may you feel welcomed home too.
Happy Thanksgiving, friends.
Good morning! Z and I are sitting in front of the fire (yay for our new fireplace!) on this lovely fall morning, having just finished a scrummy breakfast.
A couple days ago, Claire--whose oven has quit working and is having baking withdrawals--brought the nephews over and baked pumpkin cookies while I had Auntie time. Everyone was delighted. The can of pumpkin she used was one of those double-size ones, so about two cups of leftover puree found its way into my fridge. Naturally, I needed to use it up.
(I just realized that the last recipe post I wrote was also about leftover pumpkin, haha!)
Add a craving for my mom's acclaimed gingerbread recipe, and I came up with a vegan, low-low-fat, easy result with a lovely moist, spongy texture. Since this isn't a food blog, I won't entrance you with photographs of every ingredient and 17 pics of the finished product from different angles; I'll just share the recipe. Okay, and one picture.
P.S. I also had leftover cream cheese frosting from Claire's cookies, so for you non-vegan peeps, I highly recommend a good schmear over the gingerbread for a sweeter treat. Or pair it with a slice or two of sharp cheddar cheese for a healthy-feeling breakfast...like I enjoyed this morning!
Pumpkin Gingerbread
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Oil and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
In a large bowl, combine with electric mixer:
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 cup molasses
1 cup light corn syrup
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups hot* water (about 110 degrees F)
Add:
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. each baking soda, cinnamon, and ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Pour into prepared pans and bake for 50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks, or serve warm if desired.
*If using refrigerated pumpkin, heat water to about 150 degrees F
Today I am completely humbled and filled with gratefulness. I have such an easy life.
When my parents were newlywed college students, they were asked to take part in a broad study that looked at employment history and wages and family relationships. They continued to be interviewed every few years, and when we kids rolled around, we started being interviewed too. "Here comes the Interview Lady!" someone would announce, and the rest of the day was spent with a nicely-dressed woman with a clipboard and rudimentary laptop, who questioned the eight of us in turn for hours.
This process has continued with us "kids" into adulthood, and today I had my interview. I was asked about family relationships, about income, about employment history, about my children, my religion, my personality traits, and so-on (it took three hours; this is a serious study!). The more questions I answered, the humbler I became. Yeah, my parents and I have made a lot of good choices, but so much of where I am today has absolutely nothing to do with being "good." My heart breaks for those for whom the answers to these questions are completely different from mine.
"In the last 12 months, have you ever been without a place you could depend on to sleep?" No.
"In the last 12 months, how often have you felt you were treated more unfairly than other people?" Never.
"Have you ever been been personally beaten or the victim of any other violent crime?" No.
"How often have you gone without something you need, because you could not afford it?" Never.
"Think about your childhood. Was there ever a period when your family did not have enough to eat?" No.
"How often do members of your family have calm discussions? Every day, a few times a week, once or twice a month, several times a year, or Never?" Every day.
"Other than spankings, how often do members of your family hit each other?" Never.
"In the last 12 months, were you ever denied employment because of being treated unfairly?" No.
"Within your day-to-day life, how often do you feel you receive the same respect as other people? Every day, a few times a week, once or twice a month, several times a year, or Never?" Every day.
"In the last 12 months, how often were you unfairly stopped, targeted, or questioned by law enforcement?" Never.
"Have you ever seriously contemplated suicide?" No.
"In the last 3 months, how many days of work or school did you miss because you were physically or emotionally unable to attend?" Zero. (Yes, even SAHMs can miss work by literally not being able to get out of bed.)
"In the last 12 months, how many days of work or school did you miss because you were physically ill?" Three. Three days only.
"During the last 3 months, how often did G or Z seem confused, as if in a fog, or unresponsive?" Never.
"All in all, how would you rate your satisfaction in life? Very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied?" Very satisfied.
My life isn't perfect. I had an emotionally difficult time answering questions about whether I'd lost anyone close to me in the last four years (Yes, three women); and I answered that my biological mother was 52 years old when she died; and yes, I'd lost a home to a foreclosure. But I've dealt with those things without ever dealing with discrimination based on my age, gender, ethnicity, or economic status; without ever struggling to buy my children nutritious food; without ever worrying about where we would sleep the next day/week/month.
Why me? Why do I happen to be a Caucasian in a country where Caucasians are generally treated with respect? Why did I happen to be born into a family with a continued upward economic trajectory? Why did I happen to have children born to me without any physical or mental illnesses? Why do I happen to be alive in a time and place where women are given at the very least the same legal respect as men? Why do I happen to even be alive today?
I don't know the "why"s, but I do know this: It's not because of me. Every single one of those answers could change tomorrow, but that still wouldn't be because of me.
I am so humbled at the gifts God has chosen to give me at this time, and sobered as I contemplate how to share them. I am so thankful for Today. Tonight's prayer is that I can be just as thankful tomorrow...whether I'm given the same gifts or not.
