Let’s be thankful for Thanksgiving

Editor’s note: This column is being reprinted from Nov. 26, 2008. The notion Jack writes about isn’t so silly. Thanksgiving is important. It’s good to have a day that primes us to think about the people and things we are thankful for and reminds us to show that thanks. We would all be better off if we could think a little more about being thankful every day.

It may sound silly, but I'm thankful for Thanksgiving.

It's always been a favorite holiday, but it's also one that seems to provide the best memories.

Mention Thanksgiving and I think of Ronald family gatherings from my childhood, usually at the home of various aunts and uncles.

I think of watching the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys with Uncle Jim Ronald in Richmond.

I think of the Thanksgiving when Uncle Jim Luginbill arranged a blind wine tasting that was part of the traditional feast.

I remember gatherings in the fellowship hall of a church in Richmond when the assembled masses were too much for anyone's house to handle.

But some of the best memories are much more recent.

There came a time, I have no idea when it was, that my father's extended family decided to have separate gatherings rather than one that combined all of us.

By then, my dad and all his siblings were grandparents themselves, so more manageable Thanksgivings made sense.

But it was a little jarring to make the transition from a group of about 30 to just eight around the table.

That's probably what prompted a new family tradition of welcoming "strays" to the feast, inviting folks we knew who would otherwise be spending the holiday alone.

One memorable year, when my mother was working as a volunteer at Richmond State Hospital and my sister was establishing herself as a child psychologist, our "extended family" included a former mental patient who was adjusting to life outside the institution and a troubled adolescent whose real family was totally dysfunctional.

It may sound a little strange, but it was about as meaningful a way to celebrate the day — sharing the emotional bounty as well as the food on the table — as you can find.

That tradition continues to this day, usually with students or faculty from Earlham College where my brother-in-law Stephen teaches.

Last year, it was two very bright young guys from Namibia, far from home as foreign students, who otherwise would have had to settle for a day hanging around the dorm.

The conversation over the meal could not have been more fascinating. They may join us again this year, or it may be someone entirely new.

I've lost track of how many family-members-for-a-day have joined us at the table, but I haven't lost the feeling that it's a great way to mark a wonderful holiday.

The dedicated volunteers who put together the annual community Thanksgiving dinner in Portland know what that feeling's all about. They've taken it to a whole new level.

And my guess is, if you ask them, they'll tell you on Thursday that one of the many things they are thankful for is Thanksgiving itself.

Savor the day.