Holidays are nice, particularly when they come attached to a long weekend away from the office.
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Holidays are nice, particularly when they come attached to a long weekend away from the office.
That was, happily, the case this past weekend with the Thanksgiving holiday just concluded. Four (well, three-and-a-half) quiet, blissful days with nothing to do but catch up on sleep.
I say three-and-a-half because Thanksgiving Day itself found me in Lingle, covering the first-ever Community Thanksgiving Dinner gathering, hosted by a local family at the American Legion Hall. I spent a good couple of hours over there, watching people enjoy the home-cooked meal provided by Julie and Charlie Harshberger and their friends.
By all accounts, listening to the few people I was able to speak with between bites of turkey, ham, potatoes, green-bean casserole, etc., the food was good and it was a great opportunity to meet new folks over a shared meal.
There’s really nothing more basic than sharing a meal. All the way back into history, at public houses, taverns, hostels and more across Europe and, later, the young America, the breaking of bread with relative strangers became almost a nightly ritual when the days traveling or work was done.
It was a lot simpler fare in those days, true. But the idea of spending time in front of a roaring (or smoking, more often as not) fire after a day spent on horseback, on the hard, wooden seat of a wagon, or traveling by Shank’s Mare – walking, for you younger folks – was truly a time to relax.
Holidays add a particular dimension to the idea of sharing a meal, bringing together family and friends around the table, sharing stories and memories. At least, they’re supposed to.