I woke up to the smell of turkey roasting in the oven and laughter coming from the kitchen. I lay in bed listening to the voices of the women in my family gathered together in our kitchen and smile. Turning over I realize two of my cousins are sleeping next to me and know there are sleeping children in other beds of our home. Today is Thanksgiving and as is the tradition in our family the men are out hunting on our land, hoping to bag a deer. Thanksgiving , is a day our family celebrates the end of Harvest and give thanks to God, for all our many blessings.
I give my cousin Brenda a nudge, she pushes Marybeth and we start laughing. We are not ready to get up yet, so we snuggle under the covers and talk about girl stuff. Mom pops her head around the bedroom door and says, "Hey girls, time to get up and ready for breakfast, foods on the table". The boy's are already in the dining room eating pancakes and bacon with maple syrup, they look up and my cousin Norris says,"Oh no, the girls are up"! I give him a light pinch as we walk into the kitchen to say good morning to everyone. I have 6 cousins and 6 nieces and nephews all around my age. After we all get done eating we head outside to begin our day.
The day is cool, with a light dusting of snow on the ground, so we head to the barn. After a game of hide and seek, we jump in the hay loft followed by"Red Rover,Red Rover". Our dogs Rex, Brownie, Rover and Step-Toe join in the fun. When we get tired, everyone settles down with their favorite barn cat in the hay loft and we play "I See Something". It seems like we just get started when we hear the farm trucks returning with our dad's from hunting. Hooray!! it must be time for Thanksgiving Dinner. We all run out of the barn, wash up at the pump and head into the house.
All the wonderful smells of Thanksgiving fill us with joy at being together for this special meal.
We have two tables set up, one for children and one for adults. After everyone has been served, Dad blesses the food and the feast begins. After dinner and before pie is served everyone says one thing they are thankful for. I know what I'm thankful for, My Family!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Friday, November 4, 2011
Flying High
I jumped out of bed with Rex at my heels, today was the day I had been waiting for all week. Grandpa and I were going flying. After getting dressed and having a hurried breakfast, Rex and I headed out the front door and up the road to my Grandparents. Grandpa was in the kitchen having his second cup of tea, Grandma had my glass of fresh milk already poured and on the table. This was our "Big" day and nothing was going to stop us! The sun was shining and the breeze on top of Potter Hill was just perfect.
We finished our drinks and opened the door to their upstairs bedrooms and our final destination, the attic. It was a huge room that covered the entire upstairs of their farmhouse. It was filled with old trunks, furniture, pictures, books and best of all "kites". Grandpa passed his love of kites on to me. We had kites of all different sizes, colors and shapes. Grandma had made the rag tails for our kites, of varied colors, that Grandpa attached. My very favorite kite was a bright yellow one with a blue tail. We picked up our kite string, kite handle, and of course the YELLOW kite. We had names for all of our kites, this one was called "sunlight"because it looked like a bright ball of sunlight in the sky.
We walked across the yard to the open field which surrounded their home Grandpa attached the string and handle to the kite and let out several yards of string and asked me if I was ready with a big smile on his face. He started to run with "sunshine" and let her go at just the right speed and up she went, like a beautiful bird. There is no thrill, like the feel of a kite in your hands and the power and pull of it as it dances in the air ." Sunshine" with it's bright blue tail dancing behind it was a sight to behold!
Grandpa and I whopped with delight and laughter as our kite danced with the breeze. We took turns holding her because it takes strength in you arms to be a part of a kites dance. No one could fly a kite like my Grandfather. He could make "sunshine" swoop up and down like a giant bird in the sky or make her stand still without moving like a ray of sunlight. Rex would run around barking and jumping in delight at the sound of our laughter. I truly believed he enjoyed it as much as we did. This particular day Grandma came out to join us as we played with our kite. I'm not sure who she enjoyed more, the kite, Rex, Grandpa, or her grand-daughter. She put her head back and roared with laughter at us.
Finally Grandma said it was time to go back to the house and get ready for lunch and afternoon chores. Grandpa rolled in "sunshine" and as I held her, he pulled her to the ground. What a great morning we had! As we put her away in the attic, we said goodbye until another day of flying.
We finished our drinks and opened the door to their upstairs bedrooms and our final destination, the attic. It was a huge room that covered the entire upstairs of their farmhouse. It was filled with old trunks, furniture, pictures, books and best of all "kites". Grandpa passed his love of kites on to me. We had kites of all different sizes, colors and shapes. Grandma had made the rag tails for our kites, of varied colors, that Grandpa attached. My very favorite kite was a bright yellow one with a blue tail. We picked up our kite string, kite handle, and of course the YELLOW kite. We had names for all of our kites, this one was called "sunlight"because it looked like a bright ball of sunlight in the sky.
We walked across the yard to the open field which surrounded their home Grandpa attached the string and handle to the kite and let out several yards of string and asked me if I was ready with a big smile on his face. He started to run with "sunshine" and let her go at just the right speed and up she went, like a beautiful bird. There is no thrill, like the feel of a kite in your hands and the power and pull of it as it dances in the air ." Sunshine" with it's bright blue tail dancing behind it was a sight to behold!
Grandpa and I whopped with delight and laughter as our kite danced with the breeze. We took turns holding her because it takes strength in you arms to be a part of a kites dance. No one could fly a kite like my Grandfather. He could make "sunshine" swoop up and down like a giant bird in the sky or make her stand still without moving like a ray of sunlight. Rex would run around barking and jumping in delight at the sound of our laughter. I truly believed he enjoyed it as much as we did. This particular day Grandma came out to join us as we played with our kite. I'm not sure who she enjoyed more, the kite, Rex, Grandpa, or her grand-daughter. She put her head back and roared with laughter at us.
Finally Grandma said it was time to go back to the house and get ready for lunch and afternoon chores. Grandpa rolled in "sunshine" and as I held her, he pulled her to the ground. What a great morning we had! As we put her away in the attic, we said goodbye until another day of flying.
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