Traditions

People have many traditions for Thanksgiving. For as long as I have been alive, my family has joined with another family in Venice to celebrate. Over the years the crowd has grown and we normally have around thirty people. This year we missed several family members on my side, and a few other normal attendees, but we still had fun in our traditions.

Before we get to eat, it is a mandatory obligation that we take a huge group photo. It is usually a pretty funny process with jokes and mishaps frequently taking place.  The wind was crazy so we all look horribly windblown, but it is all for fun.

The time lapse is care of Matt, which was fun to show our long table over the course of the meal. After we all stuffed ourselves with the most delicious foods, we always take a walk to the beach for the sunset. It was chilly and windy, so we had to bundle up. But it is always beautiful.

After the walk back to the house from the beach we think about dessert, and all the sweet things we don't have room for in our bellies, but we take big scoops of anyway. Of course, through the entire afternoon and evening there is a lot of talking and catching up with each other, because many of these folks travel from the North and I only see them once a year.

Interwoven in all the feasting and talking with friends, a thankfulness and thoughtfulness lingers in my heart, and the hearts of many others I think, for times like these and the abundance of love there is to share with one another.