11:17 p.m. - 2002-10-13
Tradition
T'was the day before...Thanksgiving and all through the house - silence! Well not really.
My guys went off to celebrate Thanksgiving with their Dad's family today. My family gathers together tomorrow at my brother's home. Each siblings' family brings part of the dinner. It's my turn to bring desserts and I'm cooking the hams that are my Father's contribution. There will likely be 30 or more people. The boys being busy makes for a nice quiet day of preparation for me. Something that was very rare in the past.
Thanksgiving is about being grateful for the abundance in one's life and for enjoying nurturing/feeding the people who matter the most to you. I love this holiday because I love the family time and cooking and baking that goes with it. With six sons - especially in their teen years - I was used to cooking for seven plus whoever else was visiting; a dozen wasn't unusual. It was always an interesting experience given the cultural diversity in our community. I often cooked several mini dishes because of the dietary restrictions some of the children were required to keep. The bonus for me was I learned to cook a variety of international dishes from the most exacting experts - adolescent males. It has been very hard for me to learn to cook or bake in smaller portions now that most of my guys are making their own way in the world. Sometimes it's nice to be able to cook for a crowd again and to experiment with different recipes.
I made a 24 hour fruit salad for those who are on a diet (eggs, butter and whipped cream in the sauce, but the fruit cancels out those calories - right?) and a pumpkin pie cheese cake. Not quite the traditional pumpkin pie but the only real difference is the crust is made of crushed ginger snaps cookies instead of a pie shell.
I picked up all the ingredients yesterday and decided I would savour the experience as much as I could. I bought tiger lilies and fresh fruit then created a centerpiece for the table with them. Candles were lit. Then I popped Fiddler on the Roof into the VCR and went to work. Why Fiddler on the Roof? Well it's about TRADITION! faith, and families - and the inevitability of change. Seemed appropriate somehow. Besides I love musicals and with no one else in the house it meant I got to sing along.
All in all a good day.
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