happy gratitude day

i am not one who looks forward to holidays. forced cheeriness is not what i call fun. don’t get me wrong, i love a good dinner party almost more than any other kind of socializing. when the magic is right–the company, the food, the setting, and the conversation–all come together it is indeed one of life’s peak experiences. but, holidays bring expectations. and those expectations feel forced to me. everyone is supposed to be in good cheer, and to turn a blind eye to uncle bob’s tone deaf jokes, or aunt barb’s drunken verbal dagger thrusts. nope, it’s not for me. on the other hand, i do think taking one day a year to simply be grateful is an excellent idea. this has me thinking that it may be time for me to take back thanksgiving. to reinvent this holiday that i used to love, but that seems to have turned into one more occasion for celebrating excess. so i will be spending this holiday with my extended family, thinking about how to do it differently going forward. if i come up with anything good, i’ll let you know. happy thanksgiving . . . you know what i mean.