We see the generous bounty of loved ones around our table, family and friends ....
Yet we can also see our loved ones who live too far away to come to us...
And, instead of empty chairs, we can see our loved ones gathered around the table of God's heavenly banquet, gazing upon us with perfect love.
We see the sadness in the eyes of some of our loved ones, and we can see the disabilities that others bear...
But we also see the love that shines in their eyes, see their hands reaching to hug another, hear their joyous laughter as they sit to play a game, taste a dessert, or dry a dish.
We see many pairs of hands stirring gravy, chopping vegetables, carving turkey, mashing potatoes, whipping whipped cream...
And we see the many hands that preceded them doing the same motions in the great ritual of making love through making food.
We see the bounty of our own part of the country spread luxuriously across our table....
But we also see the ethnic foods and local favorites gracing tables across our great country.
We smell ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves in pumpkin pies, the brown sugary richness of pecan pies, the golden honey smell of turkey or ham, the onions in stuffing and gravy, the creamy goodness of macaroni and cheese, the tart sweetness of cranberries, and then we open our mouths and say "Taste and see the goodness of the Lord," for our hearts know and believe that the Lord has done great things for us beyond our imagining or telling.
The Lord has gathered us all around this table, across time and space, in spite of arguments past and present, or temporary estrangements, in spite of the vast separations of geography and death.
We are one in Him and one in each other as we pass food across the table or stand in line for the buffet, driven by the same hungers, in need of the same tenderness - and all can be fulfilled at this table of bounty.
We are one in Him and one in each other as we bow our heads and pray for peace, and then make more peace as we eat, laugh, visit, rise from the table to play games or watch a football game - together.
May you all have a blessed, beautiful, love-filled Thanksgiving, secure in God's love and the love of each other.
Since now is Family Time, I'll write again. on Sunday.
Much Love to you all, and Prayers -
Mary