"Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence." ~ Erma Bombeck

I will call today one of reminiscing. I do that a lot. You noticed? Good. Thanks for being so observant. It is Tuesday, November 25, 2014. It's my sister Fran's birthday today. She is 71 years young and thinking about her and our years of sojourn does bring up many memories. I hope she has a very happy birthday. The thing I had on my mind today is trying to remember my favorite Thanksgiving of all time. With this one on Thursday I will have been around for some 68 of them, therefore, surely some stand out more than others. Not really. They pretty much blend together. One consistent theme has been the outstanding food we have enjoyed over the years. That's always worth remembering. I suppose seeing in my mind's eye all the faces of our kin throughout the years is pretty special in and of itself. I can hear Granny Mac praying. I can see us kids running here and there. I can see us as teens with our friends who showed up to be a part of the celebration. I can also see our children doing the same things we did. Then I see those gone on to the other side: My dad, my baby sister Kayla, my older brother Jimmy Don, my brother Donald, my uncles and aunts, my brother-in-laws Kenneth and Charles, my wife's parents, all our grandparents, there's really too many to count. I suppose that big table and the big prayer was what tied it all together. Then it was chow down time. Laughing, talking, and yes, typically, a fair amount of overeating. No doubt about that. Here's the deal: We will do our best to replicate those same sights, sounds, and tastes come this Thursday. That's the tradition handed down from one generation to the next. To me: It's all good stuff. Very good indeed!

This past weekend of doing what we call the Santa Enterprise was quite interesting. I can't even guess how many selfies were taken by folks as we made our way from the entrance to the big hotel to our photo shop location. I will tell you something that is really true. When the song says from one to 99, well, it is very much on target. Folks get excited when Santa comes on the scene, regardless of their age. I think my most favorite response is the surprised expressions that often greet us. We are always grateful for the wonderful treatment shown to us by those who work with us. They really do treat us like we are special. The work itself. After doing seven hours on Saturday, every bone carrying the age of 68 was singing a sad song. When we would hit a little lull the workers would get anxious. I mostly was just catching my breath. On Sunday a dear sister in Christ at our local fellowship brought us the Conroe newspaper and it had our photo on the front page. It's the one above. Thank you Sister Pat. As most of you know I do love the children. But, seeing one of those multiple carrier strollers headed my way, with at least two or more little ones, well, I would be lying if I didn't say some amount of dread is involved. All and all, it was quite a jolly jolly time.

I did prepare a Bible study lesson for last Sunday morning. In that lesson we thought about what it means to be truly thankful. We talked about how that God does have an expectation of those who are His own. That expectation is grounded in a response of thankfulness. Yet, we can only show our thankful heart by the living out of a thankful life. That's a real challenge especially in a world wound tightly and bent on anger, frustration, and rage. We shared the Apostle Peter's words from his 2nd Epistle and the first chapter. The inspired text tells us about the life God has called us to. As believers we begin our new life in Christ as babies but God wants us to grow up and to build up our spiritual muscles so that we can fulfill His calling on our life. That requires us to be diligent. And, it requires us to live in a state of perpetual thankfulness for all that God has done for us and through us. There's a warning in that chapter for believers. It tells us that when we neglect the building of our spiritual life that shows itself in our daily walk, well, we can mess up our ability to see clearly. How messed up can we get? So much so the text tells us we can even forget that we have been saved from our old life. Wow! I needed that lesson. I typically always need the lessons I teach. It is one worth thinking about. For me, for you, and for everyone! Take care now and may God bless us all. Amen.  ....More later.