Like most others out there my family is preparing for this year's Thanksgiving feast. My mom has already been cooking up a storm. My brother is smoking meats. The kids are excited.

I approach this holiday season with a strong bittersweet feeling. I'm gratified to have a warm, loving family to celebrate the holidays with. I'm looking forward to swapping old stories with my brothers, seeing my little niece, watching football games, and watching my kids interact with the rest of their family.

Of course I can't help thinking of where I was at Thanksgiving just last year. This is our first major holiday apart. I wonder what she'll be doing....what she'll be thinking. Will she remember that first Thanksgiving we spent together as well as I do? Will she miss the cornbread andouille sausage stuffing I always made or the turkey gumbo I made with the leftovers? Will she think of the kids laughing and playing in the warmth of our family home? Will she remember being snuggled up on the couch watching the ballgame together? I'd be lying if I said I wasn't going to miss her and our holiday times together.

But life requires us all to deal with things as they are. So on this holiday I will give thanks. I will give thanks for six good years of marriage. I will give thanks for my wonderful children who sustain me when I don't feel like going on. I will give thanks for friends who are there for me, love me, tell me when I'm wrong, criticize me when I deserve it, and pat me on the back when I most need it. I will give thanks to a family who welcomed me home without judgement. I'll give thanks to co-workers who give so much of themselves to help kids in need. I will give thanks to my blog friends who offer me strength, encouragement, sage advice, and fellowship. I'll give thanks for those bloggers who share of themselves and their lives with the rest of us. I'll give thanks to those kids at school who reinforce my faith in the future. I'll give thanks for my good health.

I wish all of my fellow Americans a happy Thanksgiving. Its a time to take stock in our lives, realize what is really important, and enjoy those we care about. Even in bittersweet times that is something to treasure.


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