Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!
There are even a few psychedelic turkeys to greet you in this photo.
It has not been the most wonderful TG in our history. I don't think Sue and I have ever had to celebrate a Thanksgiving on our own, and it has been a bit saddening in certain moments but not overall.
We have tried to make the best of the situation and ordered dinner well ahead of time.
However, it was lacking and not up to Sue's efforts over the years, and eating on our own caused me a down moment or two. There was something missing. The food wasn't up to par, but much more significantly, we were lacking the usual company.
I think if Christmas turns out to be more of the same, one change that we will make is to not have the traditional turkey. We shall see, and we might change our minds.
Note: there are 2.5 months between Canadian TG and Christmas, so a large number of Canadians cook a turkey for both events.
Although it is easy to get a little down, there is, indeed, much to be thankful for. At 73, our health seems to be holding up, at least internally, although I am having a issues with my foot and so on.
We are not like the poor man across the street, who lost his wife a few months ago. We have each other, and I did see JJ a little on the weekend when his father came over to help with a few things. They masked, I masked, and we all kept our distance, but it was a visit of sorts. Then we encountered Danica in the cafe parking lot when we stopped for coffee prior to heading out on another colour peeping excursion.
At this time I am extremely sad for Dale and his family. Dale is a former blogger with whom I have kept in contact through FB. I tend to keep FB and Blogger separate, but I have maintained contact with Dale. A few of you oldies may possibly remember him. We have also met in person, just once and briefly. As far as I recall, I have only met one other blogger, Mary, and that was by chance.
To get to the point, Dale had a lung transplant earlier this year, but cruel nature is rejecting them. He has been in the hospital for weeks now, and can barely move without running out of breath. He now wants to go home to die. Isn't that sad?
And yet, from his hospital bed, he recently posted how grateful he is for so many things.
I ache for Dale, but his plight helps me to realize even more that I have so much for which to be thankful. I have Sue, and we have Shauna and the grands close by, and I have seen both of the kids in passing this weekend.
We also had a most pleasant drive into new-to-us area on Saturday, which was neither windy nor excessively overcast for a change. It can be invigorating to discover a new place especially at this colourful time of year. If you beg, it is slightly possible (but only slightly possible you understand lol) that I will blog about that little ramble in a few days time.
Belated 🦃 Thanksgiving wishes to you and Sue. This post is bittersweet, John, but so well expresses how many others may have felt in Canada on this holiday which is a time when family and friends gather together. Our U.S. Thanksgiving Is coming up in late November and this year we will be celebrating at home without family, unlike in recent years and we will be preparing our dinner vs. takeout. That’s because, as we formerly did when living in VA with no family nearby, we plan to Invite one or 2 neighbors who also have no family close and would be alone on the holiday. Of course, this doesn’t replace family, but it is a way to express many other things, thankfulness being central. And, we would of course follow necessary precautions.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed a different sort of Thanksgiving weekend, however I am very grateful for many things, and I really don't care about missing cooking a turkey.
ReplyDeleteI had steak pie, roast sweet potato and home grown runner beans for Thanksgiving dinner, and cherry pie for dessert, it may not be traditional but it was DELICIOUS! And I didn't have to share.
I wonder what Christmas will bring.
Consider this a begging for more! So sorry to hear about your neighbor/blogging friend's poor health on top of his wife's death. I'm glad you and Sue are in relatively good health. This changing of seasons is a bright thing, and I hope you capture a lot of great photos.
ReplyDeleteI am also sorry to hear of your friend's difficulties and certainly understand his desire to be at home and not in the hospital. So sad to go through so much and it not be successful. Happy pandemic Thanksgiving to you and hope it's better by Christmas.
ReplyDeleteSo where did you go? Looking forward to the answer. And you would not have met me by accident as I was at home roasting turkey. JG's brother is a solo single, and so came into our turkey-fragrant bubble for the holiday meal. We were really glad because, as you say, the day is lacking without family.
ReplyDeleteDid you at least get to FaceTime with the grands and Shauna? We did that last night over dinner with daughter, son in law and granddaughter who live in Buffalo. It was a very pleasant meal. They decided not to come here for an early Thanksgiving get together because of Covid and quarantining requirements. We will go there on 11/5 instead and then quarantine on return. Hoping we can do Thanksgiving with family here but all depends upon what happens at their school. Are there Covid cases again where Shauna lives and at school with the grands?
ReplyDeleteThe dinner sounds delicious(except for the peas and the pumpkin spice cheesecake) so I'm sorry it was disappointing. I think we're all finding out that the holidays are much more about getting together with our loved ones, and not about the food. (or gifts) I always love to hear about your rambles and see the photos that accompany them. There is certainly a lot of sadness and tragedy yet also much to be thankful for. Two sides of the same coin. Happy Thanksgiving to Sue and you!
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving...I forgot to give you that wish!
ReplyDeleteWe could celebrate with family here but realized it could be our last get together if the virus goes to community transfer on the island. It made the day all the sweeter.
ReplyDeleteI can understand your friend’s desire to be home. Hope he can be comfortable there.
I've had a couple of take away holiday meals. Disappointing, both food and company.
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you and Sue. I imagine our Thanksgiving definitely won’t be the same either this year. Will we even roast a turkey? Gosh.. I don’t know. You are so lucky to have Shauna and the grandkids close by. We miss our family but we’re grateful we have each other. It will have to do until next year.
ReplyDeleteBeing separated from family is a bit of a downer. We've been separated for years and are used to it. Our daughter is in Chicago and our son on the coast. We made turkey and all the trimmings.
ReplyDeleteThanksgiving and Christmas are going to be tough for a lot of people this year. I've spent the actual holidays alone for the past 20 years but I have had a separate Christmas with McFamily--usually after--sometimes not until in January. So I am grateful I am used to spending holidays alone. One can always find so much to be grateful for.
ReplyDeleteSorry about your friend. Can't blame him for wanting to go home. He sounds like a great guy.
Love that first pic. Perfect fall shot. Have a great week. :)
I've had so many miserable Thanksgivings, alone, the kids at their dad's. I try to remember the good ones!
ReplyDeleteNext year will surely be different.
Hello everyone, Happy Thanksgiving!!!
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