Memories of Past Thanksgivings - 2008

Memories of Past Thanksgivings
Thursday, November 27, 2008
(Note: This post on top Wed-Thur-Fri ... Scroll below for newer post)

Hello everyone...
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I wrote this short story for my family a few years back to bring back the memories of those good old days when we were all so young and the family was everything.
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Today I wish to share this story with you... and all those overseas doing this country so proud... in the hope that it helps bring back, in you, some of those good old memories about some of your past Thanksgivings with your loved ones...
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God bless you all and Happy Thanksgiving...
AubreyJ.........
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God I use to love those good old days at Thanksgiving time. All that good cooking and eating that went on... It's like them days had happened just yesterday!!!
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I can remember dad driving up to the Big House and all of us kids jumping out of the car and making a dash for the front porch. Just to be pulled back to help unload the car of all the food offerings that we had brought for the Thanksgiving feast.
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As we walk into the house, we're greeted by hugs and kisses from the Aunts and warm hellos from the Uncles. Smile at Papaw as we walk by and on to the kitchen and out to the back porch we go. After unloading all the food on the tables outside, it's time to go and get a big hug and kiss from Mamaw.

.Naturally we would always get the yes ma’am - no ma’am drill from her and after that all of us kids would take off in our own directions.

Now as for me -- I usually ran for Uncle Buddy and would jump up into his arms. We'd have a short man to man chat, then it was off to Papaw. Oh yea... That short dash, backward flip to a tail slide across the arm of the chair topped off with a good 10 point landing... down between the side of Papaw and the arm of the chair. Such perfection... I'd even managed to miss that big old cigar that was always in Papaw's mouth.

"Hey Papaw.... Got you any wolves this week???"
(My Grandfather had a lot of Hunting Dogs back in those days and he was a BIG Wolf Hunter.)

I sure did love getting up in that chair with Papaw. All the small talk that went on between us that only Papaws and their grandchildren can have and the smell of Papaw's cigar... Now how can any of us forget that!!!

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After a short visit with Papaw, I would run through the house to see what all the cousins were up to. Shoot... It always seemed that by the time we could all get together and get some kind of game started, all through the house you would hear Mamaw calling... "Everyone come to the table- it's time to eat." Now you would think that all us kids would come a running!!! Well some of us would, yet some of us would not.
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Yes sir, some of us kids were a little hard headed. Figure that!!! We would give ourselves them excuses like... "If we hurry up -- we can finish this game and then go eat." This never did work out, no matter what we were playing. A few minutes would pass by, then someone would come for us bringing major threats from our parents. Hard headed are not, we knew for our own self preservation it would be best to make a dash for the tables about this time.

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Now... Where you got to sit down and eat was all up to how old you was. When you came of age, you got to eat at the big tables. If not of age yet, you had to eat in the kitchen or on the back porch. (I thought on this for a little bit and came to this conclusion... If we were to have a family reunion this Thanksgiving... and everyone showed up, I'd still end up on the back porch or at best in the kitchen... and I'm almost 50 years old now!) Oh well...

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After everyone got settled down in their chairs it would start to get real quit. That's because before we could all start eating we had to have prayer. There was always some praying going on but it was more on the lines of: "Lord, please don't let Aunt Alice say the prayer this year." Mother wouldhave the food cold by the time she got done with the Thanksgiving Blessings. Yes sir... That women could sure do some praying at the table!!!

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Anyway -- after a good 5 minutes of quit time, we finally got to eat. A-Men!!! There's no need in going over the list of food again because we had it all and then some... I'd eat so much that there was no way in the world I was going anywhere near that dessert table. Well not for an hour or two...
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After the feast, all us kids would take off to play and the adults would clean up and then head for the living room to visit and watch football. Uncle J.P. and Dad would go outside and have them a smoke while Uncle Jack and Uncle R.V. headed for the back bedrooms for a short nap. After a while dad and Uncle J.P. would catch up with the men and us kids knew to play very quietly around this time. If we had awakened any of the men we would have all been dead meat!!!

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I could go on and on with this story but I think I'll end it here. Besides, I have so many fond memories about this time of the year that I'd have to write a small book to cover them all...

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Anyway, I truly hope that this short story has sparked a few fond memories in all of you and I'll end with this wish... May you and yours have a wonderful and memorable Thanksgiving and for god’s sake… don't burn the rolls this year!

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Story by: Aubrey J. Fawcett
11/15/02