Anonymous wrote:I remember when I was younger….like in my 20’s.
I was working at Denny’s on Thanksgiving. There was an older man, maybe sixty or so who was seated up at the counter alone.
He was just drinking a cup of coffee while reading the newspaper.

He looked so alone & sad.
It broke my heart.
He just sat at the counter for hours w/his coffee, browsing the newspaper.
Then after awhile he got up, paid for his coffee then walked out.

This was about three decades ago but it made me think that being alone on Thanksgiving must be one of the roughest situations to ever find oneself in…..

Anonymous wrote:It's me, covid. Just doing a quick pass through! I'll say hi to everyone real quick and then I have to get along to the next gathering!

Anonymous wrote:This one is not off to a good start. Picked 80 yr old parents up at DCA today. In the 20 minute drive home from airport found out:
1. Dad has been diagnosed with terminal cancer
2. Mom has signs of dementia and is in denial about Dad’s diagnosis
3. They need place to stay for 6-9 months due to damage to their home

And while the above was being discussed, my college senior in the backseat received a phone call to get a rejection for the job she’d been waiting to hear back about.So instead of discussing topics 1-3, my, apparently inherited, avoidance techniques kicked in and we all spent the rest of the drive home discussing the job rejection instead of topics 1-3…

“What kind of company calls to reject you at 4:30 on Thankgsiving Eve???” (Grandpa)
- The kind of company you DEFINITELY don’t want to work for. (Me)

“Why couldn’t they wait and call you on Friday or Monday?” (Grandma)
- Because they work 100 hours a week and didn’t realize tomorrow is a holiday. (DH)

“Don’t they know she is a workhorse who doesn’t know when to stop?” (Grandpa)
“And a smart, kind, beautiful Ivy League grad?” (Grandma)

And so and so on until we arrived home and I realized how incredibly thankful I am to have both of my parents, my children and spouse together one last time for the holidays.

Anonymous wrote:This one is not off to a good start. Picked 80 yr old parents up at DCA today. In the 20 minute drive home from airport found out:
1. Dad has been diagnosed with terminal cancer
2. Mom has signs of dementia and is in denial about Dad’s diagnosis
3. They need place to stay for 6-9 months due to damage to their home

And while the above was being discussed, my college senior in the backseat received a phone call to get a rejection for the job she’d been waiting to hear back about.So instead of discussing topics 1-3, my, apparently inherited, avoidance techniques kicked in and we all spent the rest of the drive home discussing the job rejection instead of topics 1-3…

“What kind of company calls to reject you at 4:30 on Thankgsiving Eve???” (Grandpa)
- The kind of company you DEFINITELY don’t want to work for. (Me)

“Why couldn’t they wait and call you on Friday or Monday?” (Grandma)
- Because they work 100 hours a week and didn’t realize tomorrow is a holiday. (DH)

“Don’t they know she is a workhorse who doesn’t know when to stop?” (Grandpa)
“And a smart, kind, beautiful Ivy League grad?” (Grandma)

And so and so on until we arrived home and I realized how incredibly thankful I am to have both of my parents, my children and spouse together one last time for the holidays.