Thanksgiving Magic by Jane Tolbert

From a child’s perspective, Thanksgiving is magical. It is that last school holiday before Christmas and often a time to see distant cousins and grandparents. While the adults endure copious meals, usually the children can be quickly excused only to reappear at dessert. At least, that is how our family dinners proceeded. During the lengthy part of the meal and clearing the table, we played in our tree fort or under the dining table, where, hidden by the lace tablecloth, we raced our toy horses and cars up and down the borders of an oriental rug. I am sure most of the adults would have liked to have joined us.

When we moved from Northern Virginia to Florida, we tried to capture the magic of those northern Virginia Thanksgivings with family and friends. Years passed before we fell into another tradition. Our Swedish neighbors introduced us to new culinary delights and lively conversation that touched on quantum theory, philosophy, sales at TJ Maxx or human nature. These meals were always followed by a walk around Lake Alice and then the new Disney movie. But after many years, they returned to Uppsala, and a Franco-Scottish couple, who had become part of the tradition also moved away.

Most recently, our Thanksgiving holidays have centered on outside activities like bike rides or walks in a nature preserve. When I was still teaching, my students said they envied my Thanksgivings. Theirs involved frantic travel to a distant city, worry about final semester projects due on their return to campus and too much food and too many family arguments. They wondered about a formula to capture the magic of Thanksgiving.

This year I hesitated to plan festivities for Thanksgiving with the recession and the fact that everyone with a day job or commute would be thankful for a day to . . . well, “chill.” But some of our Swedish friends will be back. And maybe we can convince our Franco-Scottish friends to join us also. The meal itself is secondary. We are very fortunate to have such wonderful friends. And that is the true magic.

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