Giving Thanks
In some families, it is the custom at the beginning of Thanksgiving dinner to go around the table with each person stating what they are particularly grateful for this year. This was not, to put it mildly, an idea which would have flown in my own family of origin. Ours was the sort of family in which the birthday celebrant, having cut the cake and been asked brightly if they had made a wish, would reply, unblinking, “Yes, but you’re still here.”
“Stay right where you are,” my favorite aunt once turned to hiss at me during the part of Mass where we are all invited to approach each other with a Sign of Peace; and she was one of the more sentimental ones.
Photo by Eric Tompkins on Unsplash
Because I am the sort of feeble-minded and mawkish individual who likes that sort of thing, I personally find these statements of thanksgiving to be a quite delightful custom; however, when the chattering hordes of our own particular family of friends descend on Mr. Los Angeles’ and my Thanksgiving table, it is the thirteenth labor of Hercules to get a word in edgewise, never mind instigating an orderly go-around the table. So it is today, in the quiet lull before the holiday storm, that I’ll take a moment to make a list, in no particular order, of some of the things for which I am giving thanks this week …
a roof over my head and food on the table
health that has – so far, knock on wood – remained robust despite copious ingestions of gin
a marriage between two stubborn difficult cusses who still have each other’s back after 30 years
first responders, heroes one and all
the Mar Vista Sunday Farmers Market
dark chocolate with salted almonds
cousins – I happen to have a particularly nice bunch
Paul McCartney, obviously
sandpipers
wheeled suitcases
Trader Joe’s
coming home from a wet cold walk to a hot cup of tea beside a warm fire
being able to make myself laugh even when I don’t make anyone else
Uncle Tony (1913-2006)
Leslie Daly (1953-1992)
Linda Cohen (1951-2007)
the happy hum when a party is in full swing and everyone is having fun
books and being able to read them
my tough immigrant ancestors, who emigrated from Ireland to England in order to survive so that all those years later I could emigrate from England to America just because I wanted to
Sir Ian McKellen
washing machines
fingerling potatoes
Mary Wollstonecraft
Margaret Sanger
the view from the California Incline
walk-in showers
modern medicine
Louisa May Alcott
autumn leaves
rainy days, but not too many of them
my exercise class (don’t tell my trainer)
my fierce-spirited, lion-hearted fellow survivors of St. Angela’s Providence Convent Grammar School for girls, treasured friends for life
jacaranda trees
Cherokee Purple tomatoes
the final credits of Mamma Mia!
Central Park
the lucky star that has so far prevented my own chronic clumsiness and ineffable absentmindedness from causing harm to another human being
winter sunset over the ocean
Roman coffee shops
Fred Astaire
Mel Brooks
the moment the airplane takes off and there’s not a single physical task I can perform for hours
the delightful younger people in my life, who make me laugh and give me hope for the future
not being color blind
dinner cooked by a friend
Miranda Hart
weekends
watching younger women enjoy opportunities of which in my own youth I could only have dreamed
the explosion of superlative artisanal bakers who have lately set up shop in Westside LA
The Monkees
a lazy loving blink from the cat
a clean shirt after a hot shower
a palate that actively enjoys fresh vegetables
an afternoon nap
being old enough to have accepted my natural body size instead of wasting mealtimes trying to fight it
air traffic controllers
The New York Times Sunday acrostic
warm socks on winter evenings
peonies
Harpo Marx
avocado toast
jigsaw puzzles
Chandler and Joey
Michael Sheen and David Tennant
Steed and Mrs. Peel
our Thanksgiving dinner and the good friends who make it such fun to share it with
the day after our Thanksgiving dinner, when all the good friends have gone home and there’s nothing to do but lounge at ease, feeling smugly post-hospitable and picking at superior quality leftovers
people who subscribe to The Immigrant Chronicles
people who press the “like” button on The Immigrant Chronicles
people who read The Immigrant Chronicles
Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
That's long list 😁 I seem to score 3, First Responder and read and like Immigrant Chronicles. Have a great Thanksgiving !
Wow, what a list! I was thinking of posting a mere note on Thanksgiving day itself with a handful of things to give thanks for, but this has given me pause and now I'm not sure if I can 😂
My favourite was "...despite copious ingestions of gin" - what a phrase! (I too should be thankful for the same, and I can also add whisky)
The one about younger women enjoying opportunities - it's not quite the same, but there's a tenuous link here. I really enjoy some of the perspectives of the younger women writers here on Substack. It's fascinating to hear their thoughts, experiences. Perhaps because I have a young daughter and I'm trying to envisage a hopeful future for her.