Right about now we start thinking about that wonderful holiday, Thanksgiving and what we are thankful for. Because I’m old, I had to look back at previous blogs so I wouldn’t follow in my father’s footsteps and repeat or rehash stories I’d written about before.

For many people, Thanksgiving is their favorite holiday or a close runner-up. That is certainly true for me because Thanksgiving is a holiday for family. Sure, Christmas is also a holiday for family, but it gets lost in all the what did you get for Christmas…because the presents seem to overshadow the festive gathering of generations.

Family can sometimes drive us crazy. This is especially true when you spend more than a few days together…and that is why I always loved Thanksgiving more than the other holidays. It was a lot shorter. During Christmas, people stay for a week or more.  Thanksgiving, in my family, was an in an out affair. Fly in, eat some great food, and leave after a few days before we drive each other nuts.

I’ve learned that as I get older, my views are more cemented and so are the views of my family members. When we agree, life coasts along without fireworks. But alas, we do not always agree. That makes for some ever-increasing rabid debates that often take dangerous detours and cause angst in the family reunions.

When I was younger, we tended to get together as a family more often. My sisters and I would try to fly to Florida to be with mom and dad who had retired there. Now that my mother is gone, we don’t do that anymore. She was, after all, the glue that held the family traditions together. She was also a fabulous cook. I miss those times almost as much as I miss my mother.

My mother used to establish the rules and keep us in check, especially my father. Although she never did manage to keep him from repeating the same old family stories every single year. Now that my mom is no longer here to rule with that iron fist, it’s a free-for-all. That free-for-all sometimes gets ugly after a few days.

My wife and I established a new tradition a few years ago and it works for us. We make reservations at a nice restaurant and go out to eat. No mess to clean up. No leftovers for weeks afterward. The nice part of this tradition is that we have family that joins us every year…my nephew and his wife and on a few occasions my younger sister and her husband. Last year my other nephew moved to Washington and he joined our merry band of lazy partiers. I say lazy because I used to do the whole Italian cooking thing with too much food and days of prep. Now that I’m old and lazy, I much prefer the new tradition.

This year I have a lot to be thankful for: my health; my wife’s health; my two nephews who live out here and their partners; my new job; readers who have supported my books; a fabulous publishing company who gave me contracts for the multiple books I wrote while unemployed; and a loving and supportive wife.  What are you thankful for?

Oh hey, by the way, I wrote a Thanksgiving story and there are some parts that are a bit close to home and my experiences with Thanksgiving. It’s a good story…honest…and it has the characters from Asset Management and The Organization in it for your added entertainment!  Click here to get it for FREE on Kindle Unlimited: The Thanksgiving Baby Caper.

Want to read my other books to give me another reason to be thankful…you know the drill…click the links below!

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