Gving Thanks…oh yeah

I already know how lucky I am. And I am incredibly thankful for everyone in my life and everything that I have. This time of year, though, makes me very sentimental for the years that have passed by and can never be retrieved.

Almost all of the players are gone, passed on to their great reward so to speak. But rest assured their memory stays firmly embedded and fresh in my mind. A bunch of crazy old coots and cusses they were, which is what made them memorable.

For instance, Uncle Charlie, who seemed about 97 years old when I was a kid, used to come to the house between Thanksgiving and Christmas. He could very well have been DB Coopers grandfather since he was always in a suit and thin little tie that was fastened to his shirt with a silvery tie clip. He would have boxes and boxes of candy…always the same kind…chocolate covered peanut chrunch. They sort of tasted like a beta test of Butterfingers. My Grandmother would buy boxes and boxes from him. I don’t think that she liked them very much but he was her uncle, so she bought them. Every year without fail he would show up. And every year, in the tradition of the year before, we would walk him outside. He’d get in his old fashioned car from the 20’s and take off. And every year, in the tradtion of the year before, our waves goodbye turned into frantic waves of terror as we all yelled ‘You’re in the wrong lane, Uncle Charlie!!!!’ Not sure how, but he got to where he was going every day and with minimal police interaction, I’m told.

Well, then there was Aunt Lucy and Uncle Pete. Of course they were out of their minds…I realized _that_ early on. The first thing that I observed about them is that they liked to drink. The second thing that I became aware of was that they had very strong opinions about every subject that ever came up in conversation. Usually those opinions were negative, but at least they had opinions. They used to show up every Thanksgiving night for dessert and Turkey sandwiches. That was a tradition that I both loved and hated. I think at first I felt it was an intrusion. They were coming to eat ‘my’ turkey sandwiches. But as I got older, I really began to appeciate the dimension that they brought to tradition. Aunt Lucy made the word ‘fierce’ worth its weight in gold. Whew.

My Aunt Audrey was always around for holidays. Not necessarily on the holiday, but certainly filling up enough of it to make them memorable. She was a strong woman. Wow. Loved to iron. Taught me the proper way to iron a collared shirt as she called them. Good thing I listened but it takes me infinitely longer to iron a shirt. She would have her spray bottle and be done in a red hot second. Anyway, she would always come over and sit and talk to my Grandmother and eat cookies at the kitchen table for hours. I used to love watching the two sisters sit there. I could tell how much they loved each other when they weren’t being radically stubborn and hating each other Sigh. Memories.

And every New Years Day…without fail…Uncle Bob and Aunt Betsy would come and visit. Uncle Bob is a throw back to a time when every man wore a suit. He is always wearing a shirt and tie regardless of the casualness of the occasion. And he has no idea. And if he does, he couldn’t care less. He’s starting to show his age a bit but that’s ok.

Oh, I would be seriously remiss if I did not mention my Uncle Horace. This man was a devoted husband for 176 years…seemed like it anyway. He and Aunt Beattie never had kids of their own for what ever reason. They did have a beloved three legged Pug whose name escapes me at the moment. Now Uncle Horace was a unique an individual as you could possibly find. He had no problem cursing someone up one side and down the other if it was well deserved. And in ‘mixed’ company as well. As it turns out his sisters had the same personality streak in them. Anyway, Uncle Horace and I were at our family picnic when he asked to see my ‘new fangled’ cell phone 10 years ago (it was new fangled and about 15 cell phone ago). He was interested in all of the features and how to make a call and was very gentlemanly when he asked if he could make a call. When I asked who he was calling just as the call was being connected his response was…I’m calling the Bensels because they all went to the fire house for some stupid shit that could have waited. I’m gonna tell them that I put a bomb in there and good luck finding it!!! oh yeah. I loved Uncle Horace.

So, as sad as it makes me that so many of the people who influenced my life are gone, I always remember how lucky I am that they were here for me for as long as I had them. And I am thankful for all the people that I still have.