Giving Thanks!

Today is Thanksgiving, the first time in history of being back in KC that I’m not cooking and the family is not cooking. This year I passed the reins over to my baby girl, who decided that she wanted to cook the meal for family and friends and I said sure only because she was so excited about the possibility and I thought I would have to work

So as I’m sitting here watching her work, throwing a cherry/apple pie in the oven and mixing up something called a pineapple casserole to go with the ham, I think about my own childhood and all the Thanksgiving meals I would help my mom prepare and we used to start weeks in advance for the big day.

Then my thoughts turned to the world today, the violence in Ferguson, families who have lost a child and even families that are just broken. I give thanks that no matter what happens in the outside world, my family may have a few issues but we are a family.

So many young people I talked with leading up to this day feel they can’t go home because something has broken that family bond.

They speak of how they can’t get along with their mothers or fathers and haven’t spoken to siblings because of some unforgivable sin.

These are all things that I can never begin to understand even when my own boyfriend

tells me of the horrors that he suffered with his family, I don’t understand and it hurts because regardless I have a family always there.

No matter what may happen, we can always go to our mom or dad and they will be there for us, mom may talk about us but if we say we’re hungry she will feed us, if we are short on a bill, dad will reach in his pocket and help us out.

I wish my friends and loved ones could know what our family is like, I wish that one day I will be able to open my home to those who feel they can’t go home.

Today I give thanks not for the material things but for those things that make a difference in my life, my family and the people I love.

Happy Thanksgiving and find something to give thanks for!