Hearts and bellies are full
As the week comes to an ends everyone is settling into Thanksgiving weekend with their bellies and hearts full. It won’t be long before the holiday rush picks up again. Thanksgiving week is the perfect opportunity for all of us to slow down and fully enjoy every moment spent with family. It’s also a time to reflect on past memories, celebrate with special traditions, and catch up with family.
It is tradition for each member in my family to make a few of their favorite dishes to bring to Thanksgiving and one member is in charge of the turkey. For many years the turkey chef was always my mother, but when she became elderly the torch was passed on to me. In my family, I am deemed the designated procrastinator when it comes to holidays. I always use the excuse that I got it honestly from my Dad. In the past I would wait until the morning of Thanksgiving to put the frozen turkey in a sink full of water to thaw out. However, this year my goal was to be organized and prepared so I put the turkey in the fridge Saturday night to thaw. It certainly is less stressful knowing I will not have to worry about the turkey being completely thawed in time for cooking.
That is where the second Thanksgiving tradition comes in, a tradition I think most women can relate to on Thanksgiving: waking up at the crack of dawn to start cooking the turkey. Being part of a family of seven brothers and sisters meant that the Thanksgiving meal was enormous and so was the turkey. It never failed that the turkey be at least 20 pounds and it always took at least 5 hours to cook! The turkey was the first thing that went in the oven in the morning. Second to that were the side dishes and decorating the tables with the best silverware and dishes.
My favorite Thanksgiving dishes to make are dressing, squash casserole, sweet potato casserole, and asparagus with cheese sauce. My daughter Emily enjoys making pumpkin pie and her grandmothers famous mac and cheese. The recipe is simply too good not to share. Recently we’ve been celebrating Thanksgiving at Emily’s place in Alabama so I will be traveling to prepare the Thanksgiving feast the day before. I hope everyone will have a safe and happy Thanksgiving this year!
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One of my great joys working for the newspaper is meeting new people in the community and seeing what they do for the area. I went to the second annual Thanksgiving meal giveaway at Mt. Moriah Baptist Church on Marianna Road to take pictures on this past Saturday’s wintery cold morning. I arrived a little after nine, but they began at 8 a.m. I pulled into the parking lot and saw several people bundled up in coats, scarves, and gloves waiting for people to pick up their boxes that contained all the fixings for a holiday meal. I couldn’t help but think what a wonderful way it was to give back to the community! “It’s an excellent way to give back to the community,” Deiadra Oliver said. “It’s coming from the heart. It’s not just about giving; it’s showing love.”
Erica Johnson pulled in to pick up a box. “It’s a great thing for the community and for those in need,” Johnson said. “It shows the love in the community.”
The church members working Saturday morning were R.J. Wilson and his wife, Flo; Eddie Jones, Jorja Burgess, Ruby Jones, Joan Lester; Oran and Annette Mitchell, Estella Craft Dean, and Deiadra Oliver.
We meet many people in the community at the newspaper office, but I have enjoyed meeting many of our subscribers this past month. We had our November subscription special going on and more traffic than usual has been coming through the office.
When I catch our subscribers at the front desk I make a point to say hello because it is always a joy to talk and hear what our subscribers say. I met one of our long-time subscribers, Mary C. Skelton. She was a ray of sunshine when she came in. With her beautiful smile, she told me how much she loved reading The South Reporter articles and enjoyed the columns. I’m so glad I got to meet her, and I hope to hear from her more.