"Reflections On Married Life...Home For The Holiday"

Today is Thanksgiving, and for the first time in almost three years, I am home for the holiday.  Although, I did go into work for a couple of hours early this morning, when I came back home, the husband and I started preparing our Thanksgiving dinner.  Cooking together is fun and usually sparks interesting conversations for us.

We're having a very traditional meal, at least traditional in my family... We'll be having roasted turkey, sage cornbread dressing, mustard potato salad, green beans (no, not that strange casserole concoction that's so popular at this time of year), cranberry relish, yeast-raised dinner rolls, and desserts.  I started the desserts yesterday before going to work when I made my family's old-fashioned raisin pound cake.

The recipe for the pound cake is one that's been passed down through my mother's family for many generations and dates back to the slavery era when my ancestors on my mother's side were fortunate enough (all things being considered, having been slaves) to be "House Negros" and as such were the cooks and housekeepers of the master's home. 

As it always is, making the cake was both a happy and sad affair.  As I mixed and stirred and sifted, I was reminded of the many times over the years of my childhood and young adulthood that I helped my mother make this cake and listened to her tell the story of it's origins in our family... those were happy memories.  But I was also reminded that my mother's been gone to heaven for eight years now and I miss her presence more with each day that passes, though in truth, she is never far from me... a part of her lives in my heart.

In addition to the cake, yesterday, I made pie dough so that this morning, Eddie and I could also make a traditional pumpkin pie.  The joy of love and companionship was fully manifested as I stirred while he cracked the eggs... It might seem like a mundane thing, but it was powerful and meaningful to me, having waited a lifetime for someone to share the daily tasks of living with. The pie turned out great, it's very pretty and picture perfect.  I can hardly wait for dinner time and the desserts to see if it tastes as good as it looks.

Right now, Eddie is waiting on me to help him straighten up the house and set the table for dinner.  My older brother will be joining us for dinner and we're both looking forward to enjoying our first Thanksgiving dinner as a married couple.

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"A life lived in fear is a life half-lived..."