I love the Thanksgiving season. Pumpkin pies are back in stock at Costco and many stores have seasonal decorations. The weather is changing and many people are making plans to travel out of town to visit friends and relatives.
My wife works hard putting together our Thanksgiving dinner. She loves making many of the dishes that were part of her family’s dinner when she was growing up. These included mashed potatoes and gravy plus yams, turnips, red cabbage, green beans, cranberry salad and dinner rolls. Desserts included apple pie and pumpkin pie
The center piece of Thanksgiving dinner is the turkey. My wife defrosts it overnight and then prepares the stuffing in the morning. My job is to wash the turkey and help my wife fill the turkey with stuffing. Once the turkey is in the oven the house is filled with a fragrant aroma throughout the day.
Shopping for the right turkey can be a challenging responsibility. Since I am the one who usually buys the turkey, I watch the newspaper ads for coupons and the best price. Grocery stores often offer a turkey at a reduced price if you purchase $25 of other items. Seemed like a bargain to me. My wife also likes to cook a big turkey. I often look for one that is at least 22 pounds or more. The bigger the turkey – the more leftovers!
However, I learned an important lesson a few years ago. Instead of buying an expensive Butterball turkey, I bought one of the store-brand turkeys at a reduced price. After all the work and preparation we sat down to our annual Thanksgiving dinner. But, the turkey tasted like a rubber ball instead of a Butterball. It was tough and chewy. It was a huge disappointment.
I learned a valuable lesson. When it comes to Thanksgiving dinner don’t cut corners on the turkey. Buy the Butterball so you don’t end up eating a rubber ball. Let me encourage you to enjoy Thanksgiving with your family and friends this year. You may want to invite a neighbor or widow or a college student to enjoy the day with you too. They will be glad you did and you will too!
For 365 more stories and articles (one for each day of the year) by Mark Hopper you can purchase a copy of his book “Let Me Encourage You“. The Pre-Christmas Sale is still on – two books for $30 plus $5 postage. Order your books today at markh@efreedb.org.
Let Me Encourage You by Mark Hopper 