Growing Turkeys ~ A Story of a Memory
Thursday, November 29, 2012 at 5:00AM 
Thanksgiving made me stop and consider some important family relationships.
My husband's father is very dear to me. He lives just a few miles away and takes such an interest in my children and me.
He was born during The Great Depression, raised in rural Alabama, eventually married and then did quite well for himself.
He was brought up in a time when family lived near each other. They CARED about and for each other.
I imagine on holidays like Thanksgiving they probably enjoyed a good meal and then everyone rocked and talked. I can see it now. I wish I could have lived during that time.
Our lives are hectic and disconnected now.
As I sat with my father-in-law after dinner he told me of his upbringing. We talked about how we are disconnected from so many family members today, and we spoke of the disintegration of the American family.
I don't think we realize the price of "progress".
As everyone sat in another room watching a movie, I was blessed with the gift of time to listen, talk, and feel CONNECTED.
My own parents live 12 hours from me, so I miss a lot of holidays with them.
I gained so much encouragement and comfort from the wisdom of this nearly 80 year old man.
I wonder how much people today just stop and LISTEN. Do we sit and treasure those moments with older family members?
I think it was all the more precious to me because my own children are growing at the speed of light.
Will they be able to slow down enough to spend time with their parents in 30 or 40 years?
Or will we be even more disconnected then?
Growing Turkeys
Sitting at Thanksgiving dinner we were talking about our most recent read aloud, The Great Turkey Walk. (Add this to your list of "must reads", but the way. It's a GIFT.)
As the kids were chattering about the book, granddaddy piped up and said,
"Did you know I used to grow turkeys?"
That got everyone's attention (especially my seven year old!).
{I think he wondered how you could grow a turkey}
We listened to the story of how grandaddy had raised eight turkeys one year, and then they ate one for Thanksgiving. Imagining him "growing turkeys" was pretty funny.
After dinner we were looking through photo albums.
Guess what we found?
What a memory.
Are we building enough of these memories in our families?
Are we slowing down enough and being STILL ENOUGH to truly allow those memories to be formed?
...just a little something to think about as we are on the doorstep of Advent, a time for making the most precious of memories.
How do you make lasting memories with your family?
Reader Comments (5)
So true. My mom was a bit sad. They live in Kentucky, we in Virginia. Dad doesn't want to travel, we have animals to care for. So, we didn't have any one here for the special day. My brothers are in in AZ and NM. That just spreads us apart even more.
It is sad to think the family is disintigrating (why does that show as misspelled?) . I see it in my own family. I am the only one to try hard to keep the family connected, but the boys tend to think they don't need anyone but themselves. :(
Thanks for your post. BTW - I am starting up my ladybugsabode.blogspot.com again. I look forward to seeing you there.
This is such a sweet post. Thank you for sharing and reminding me to slow down and give time for memories to be shared and made.
Blessings...
What a precious time! I agree that our growing technology has made it more difficult to truly relish and savor our relationships. This post is especially significant to me as we are preparing to move far away from both of our families. I can feel myself drawing away as a way to "protect" myself from being hurt when the time to drive away comes. I grew up in a family that was so close. Everyone lived in close proximity to one another and we spent lots of time together. That has been one of the most difficult things about being a military family for me. This has encouraged me to really savor the time that I have left with my family and think of ways we can bridge the distance once we move.
I love this post Mary. The thing is my family are all in a few miles radius but we get together so rarely. My Mother was our glue I think and she made sure we got together often. You are so blessed to be collecting these 'memories' with your FIL. You and your children too. I LOVE that picture!!!
We take pictures whenever we get the chance. My husband gets a little tired of always taking a family picture, but I always tell him he'll appreciate it when our kids our grown up!