TOUCH HANDS

TG Weekend is over and Sophie and I are alone in The Study.

The eleven guests have gone their various ways and we begin the countdown to Christmas.

The cycles repeat, thank The Lord.

Dear Wife will return this afternoon having overnighted returning a Dear Cousin to her home, a two-hour drive from us.

And now there is time for reflection.

So many things to think about; to wonder about; to deal with.
So many blessings!

The prayer once again comes to mind, as it so often does:

These are the days the Lord hath made.
Let us rejoice and be glad in them.

We sense that the outside world swirls and roils around and even within our Nation. We rejoice in the positives and worry and hope and pray regarding the negatives.
Such is the way of life.

But for now, we have a few moments to reflect on our Thanksgiving Weekend, on our Family, on our Blessings.

The thirteen of us were able, once again, to gather and to reflect, to remember the decades of such gatherings.

There was fellowship. There was feasting. There was laughter and there were tears.
And we looked with joy and hope upon our most perfect Dear Granddaughters.

We observed the hallowed Thanksgiving traditions: the days of prep; the pre-TG Day arrivals of overnight guests; the Great Day itself; the breakfasts; the shopping and dining out the day after; the Dickens Christmas Carol Theatre the next day; the fires in the fireplace; the birthday and even Christmas gift exchanges with folks who will be far away on Christmas Day; and then the farewells on Sunday when everyone finally went their various ways.

Every moment was precious.
May we remember all of them exactly as they occurred.

Another quote comes to mind, this one from our annual Christmas Letter:

Ah Friends, dear friends, as years go on
And heads get gray
Touch hands, touch hands, with those that stay.