Thanksgiving is past and today another November slips into the history books.

Again this year it was a month of gathering together and sharing feasts with family and friends. I was fortunate enough to enjoy holiday meals three days in a row. On Thursday, the 17th, I joined in the Thanksgiving dinner at the Senior Activity Center. The next day our newspaper colleagues assembled for a holiday meal at the office in Siloam. Then Saturday evening, family members gathered at my nephew’s home near Centerton for the annual feast.

After Mama’s death just a month ago, everyone agreed Thanksgiving just wouldn’t be the same without Mama and Grandma around so we didn’t plan our usual meal at her home. We appreciated Dustan and Cecile’s invitation to join them at their charming country home. Playing with their darling daughter Nevaeh, 3 in August, and new son Haydan, just 2 months old, was a big attraction too. And for me there was the added luxury of not having to worry about cleanup before or after the meal.

We had a scrumptious meal, thanks to the cooperative efforts of my sisters and nieces. Nancy cooked the turkey and dressing and made peach, apple and pumpkin pies. Mary Alice made a pecan pie and brought 7-layer salad. (Thesalad was always brother Richard’s contribution to our holiday meals so she was carrying on his tradition). The nieces provided mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and corn and made a cheese ball, chocolate pie and cherry cheesecake. All I had to do was bring rolls, olives and soft drinks!

After several days of cloudy, windy weather we were delighted that Thanksgiving Eve was sunny and warm. Jim spent the day driving here and there to complete a couple of small jobs and I tagged along to enjoy the lovely weather, taking a book to read in the pickup. First he went east of Hiwasse to adjust a new door that wasn’t fitting properly. Next we drove west of town where he replaced a mailbox and post which had been damaged by a passing driver. There was a bonus in the second job when the lady of the house gave us jars of her home-canned piccalilli, apple butter and apple pie filling. They are pleasing reminders of the harvest season setting on the kitchen counter and we are looking forward to sampling them soon.

Thanksgiving was another beautiful day, sunny and calm, so after washing up the breakfast dishes I went out and burned our small brushpile. Jim watched several football games and I took a shopping trip to stock up on some basics, milk, eggs and chips tosnack on.

We attended a meeting that evening and returned home to dine on leftovers. I accented my meal with cranberry sauce and green olives and topped it all off with a piece of pecan pie and a glass of eggnog.

Friday was another big football day but “our” teams were not very successful. I went to the office to work for a few hours but returned to watch the Hogs game with Jim that afternoon. We were disappointed when the Razorbacks lost to topranked LSU and missed out on playing a national title game. Then that evening we bundled up and headed for Lion Field to watch our Gravette Lions battle Dollarway in a third-round playoff game. Loyal fans cheered them on but it was not enough to carry them to victory and they ended their season for this year.

As we bid farewell to another Thanksgiving holiday I’ll close with columnist Jo Northrop’s reflections on this uniquely American holiday. “I like to think of everyone in this country as a great patchwork quilt,” she wrote, “with each region contributing color, texture and strength to the overall pattern. We are held together by our common threads of interest and goals. The Pilgrims had the right idea - gratitude and thankfulness for abundance, a willingness to share and an attitude of neighborliness.”

Gratitude, thankfulness, sharing, neighborliness - those are indeed admirable qualities. Let’s try to improve our world by practicing them all year long.

Susan Holland, who works for the Westside Eagle Observer, is a lifelong Benton County resident.

Opinion, Pages 5 on 11/30/2011