A Porch People Thanksgiving

I am sure at some time in your life you have seen the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving movie.  I used to look forward to it....and somewhere along the way I grew up.  It was my kickoff for the Thanksgiving Holiday.  Today we went to Aunt Doris' house for the Burgess family Thanksgiving.  These are some of my favorite folks, these are my people, these are Porch People.  I looked forward all day to being at this gathering.  I knew there would be hugs, food, fellowship, more food, and if you left hungry it was your own fault!  This family has some amazing cooks in it!  Marcie has Jett for the time being (Magen and Keaton are in Birmingham with the girls) and so I volunteered to cook the dressing she normally cooks.  WHAT WAS I THINKING!  I love to cook, but I have never in my 59 years on this earth made dressing.  Remember....I grew up in South Florida....and my mom cooked STUFFING!  I am a Stove Top addict today because eating it gives me a feeling of home.  I asked Marcie for her recipe because I did not want anyone to be shocked with stuffing.  She wrote it out, as we do here in the South, on an envelope and talked me through it. The closer the weekend came....the more nervous I became.  Who am I kidding?  I was past nervous.  Friday night I made a pone of cornbread in my largest skillet.  Saturday morning at 5 a.m. I was making pone number two.  We went to breakfast with Beth, visited Jessica at Awbrey's Open House, ran to Russell Do-It, and Walmart, before coming home so I could complete this dressing.  Two huge onions, four stalks of celery, some soup, broth, salt, pepper later I had a massive amount of dressing in a pan, on my shirt, and on my face and arms.  I did not know how long to cook it.  So I decided to put it on at 12:30 and cook it for 30 mins and check it continuously.  Marcie gave me explicit instructions to  not cook it throughout....but to make sure when I stuck the toothpick in it came out with a few crumbs on it.  I thought....Hey....I make bread....I can do this......WRONG!  I should have had a trial run.  It was beautiful to look at.  There were crumbs on the toothpick.   It had a good taste.  It just was not what Marcie's tastes like...NOT EVEN CLOSE!  Kim brought another pan and HER's was just like Marcie.  When we went home Kim's was almost gone.  Mine was still hanging out...about 2/3rds full.  Marcie's teacher critique was well received....she said I needed another onion AND more broth when I make it for the Christmas gathering.  I laughed at that one.  I have been assigned chicken fingers so I am off dressing duty til next Thanksgiving.  Believe me I will have practiced between now and then.  For a first time...it was not terrible.  It was edible (better with gravy and cranberry sauce on it) and I can now say I have made dressing. Thanks Marcie for the guidance.  As we sat and talked about all that we were thankful for I noticed Marcie getting kind of quiet.  I gave her a questioning look and she told me this was a bittersweet day for her.  Magen and Keaton joined us for the meal.  They were going to borrow their son for the day....and here this precious fractured little family was.  Everyone was here....but the girls....and right now they are not even together.  Kash is at Children's awaiting surgery and Kruze is still in the UAB NICU.  Sitting there looking at the family....made me miss mine....a lot.  The more I sat there, the more I wanted to cry.  As I looked into each face, saw the love and hope in their eyes, and heard the conversations going on all at once I felt at peace, I felt loved, I felt a strong sense of belonging.  It doesn't matter if you are blood related through your earthly parents, or blood related through your heavenly Father....we family and have so many things to be Thankful for.  God spoke to me during that still small window and told me...."now that is what I want your sermon on tomorrow. "" Did you hear me?"  He really spoke so loud I could not understand why everyone else was not looking up.  When Frank walked into the room a little later I told him we needed to go home.  We packed up what food we had left.....except for the dressing...we left it!  Once we got home (we live a pasture away) I sat down and threw my original sermon in the trash.  I am always amazed when God speaks(It amazes me even more when I listen).  What a blessed day I have had!  Good food, good friends, good family, and a good time was had by all!  Happy Thanksgiving to all and to all a good night!