Our Annual Trip Through November
November is a roadtrip month. Many people travel long distances to spend Thanksgiving with family or friends. We won’t be traveling (physically) ourselves this year, but other people will be coming to us.
One of my sons lives in Atlanta and he plans to bring his two daughters up for that weekend. His older son, Colt, is coming with his wife from St. Louis. The rest of us live here, but we seldom eat together. Having a big family dinner for holidays used to be one of our holiday traditions. Lately, we are so wide spread and busy that it just doesn’t happen as often.
Sometimes there are only the four of us: my oldest daughter who lives with me and two of my brothers. At times, it’s been a temptation to just make a pot of spaghetti and forget what day it is. This year though, it looks like we’ll have a crowd again. Not everyone, my youngest daughter and her kids are in Charlotte and they won’t be able to make such a long trip just for one day. My oldest granddaughter lives 4 hours away and she will have to work on Friday, so eating dinner at 6pm here won’t be practical for her either.
Our schedule has traditionally been to serve at supper time. That way people with in-law obligations at the traditional time can still come to our house late in the day. That was started by my mother and we’ve stuck to it. It usually works pretty well.
The thing is,Thanksgiving is a roadtrip whether you go somewhere or have people come to you. Even if you are far from home and wind up eating in a restaurant alone, something my youngest daughter and I did several times, it’s a trip down memory lane.
Holiday meals are times of nostalgia. A time to remember our childhood and/or our children’s childhood. The memories may be sweet or bitter but, either way, they will begin the journey as Thanksgiving Day approaches and carries us away to visit yesteryear. The journey continues on through December until that most emotion fraught day of all, Christmas. May your trip be a pleasant one and, if it seems more on the bitter side, may you make find ways to make better memories for next year’s journey.
One thought on “Our Annual Trip Through November”
Aaaw.. so true that any way you celebrate, it makes memories. We rarely make it back home to celebrate with our extended family. My husband and I usually cook a traditional meal for the kids (with my side of Tofurkey), but last year we went out to Denny’s and we wound up having the best time there. I think my son had pancakes! How nice that you all get to spend it together though (at least many of you).