The house is still quiet, turkey has been in the large roaster for a couple hours now. I should already be dressed according to times past-but it is different times now. This is my third Thanksgiving as a widow. My first Thanksgiving as a wife was in 1957, one day before my first child, Jeff, was born. I was 17.
Most of my following 55 Thanksgivings were spent with my in-laws, it was traditional and I loved it. We had good times together. I loved my sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, all those nieces and nephews but I especially loved Noah and Willena-my mother and father-in-law.
Noah was a sweet quiet man that enjoyed having all his family around and so did Willena-enjoy having her family around, that is. She was a go getter of a woman. She had worked hard all her life to have what she had-Noah had also.
On Thanksgiving mornings we'd wake up to the smell of the turkey and dressing she had gotten up at 2 or 3 a.m. to put on. She would have cooked for days before and there was never a shortage of good food in her home.
After eating breakfast she had cooked, the great, white hunters [Noah, Len, his brothers, nephews] headed out to do their great white hunting thing while us little ol' wifey poos stayed at home with the l'il chillens and finished fixing dinner.
How in the world we had so much fun in that little house with that many people is sometimes a mystery to me but we had great times.
That was a sketch of Thankgivings past, today my family will be together in my home-my four children and hopefully all of their children. Some of the "greats" won't be here because of circumstances but Willena's and Mom's tradition of plenty of food will be carried on.
The last Thanksgiving in 2011 was bittersweet with all of Len's family. We kind of knew some wouldn't be with us the following year, and they weren't. On my bucket list is to gather photos and videos of our gatherings and put them all together so we can relive all those great memories.
Here is a collage of Len and me with our children:
and as adults-the center photo was taken on Mother's day in '03
I hope to get a photo today of all of us together.
Have a great Thanksgiving. I am truly grateful for my many blessings. I have come through a bout of cancer this year and we have lost 2 more of our family but God is always in control and He loves me and "All Mine".
God bless you and keep you and all of yours
Carolyn Wainscott
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