Mary Angel

(11/2020) Thanksgiving. I can’t believe we are in November already. It seems like only yesterday that we all got the word that we were on lockdown and the crazy world we live in got a little bit crazier. It was months of getting closer and closer with our family, maybe even too close. There were definitely times when I thought I would smack someone if I didn’t get a little space and others when I couldn’t imagine why we hadn’t implemented a required family time from the kids each week. Now, suddenly it is November.

Some people might be asking, with the way the world is, what they have to be thankful for. I would start by pointing out the little appendages that lead you to read this article and me to write it. Then maybe I would roll into family and friends. If you were one of my children I would point out the roof over your head and the food on the table. Those two always evoke an eye roll from the kids. I might then break out the pictures of my kids doing school work, for the last two months, in their pajamas. If none of that worked I would stop buying snacks, ice cream, and rice (weird I know, but a family favorite) and then, when asked what was going on, reply with a tender, "Oh, were you thankful for those things?", followed by another eye roll no doubt. There are so many things we take for granted in our lives that would be considered a blessing by other people.

If you really are having a hard time coming up with something, ask your kids. Be careful though, because you never know what they will say. There was an entire television show based on kids saying the craziest things. Over the years, some of my best full belly laughs have been from things the kids have said. On the other hand, their comments have also caused many tears of joy. I thought I might share some of the funny conversations so that everyone could be thankful for laughter. Don’t stop here though. Reminisce with your friends and family this holiday season (even over Zoom) about some of the off the wall things your kids have said. Be forewarned, the following stories may make you wet your pants or even worse crack a smile!

One day, when my husband and I were in the middle of a conversation, he said, "We are going to need a limo." My then 8 year old daughter walked into the room only catching a tiny bit of the conversation and interjected, "WAIT, I can get you an elephant, I know a guy!" We all rolled. To this day I am still not sure where that came from or who the guy was that had those kinds of connections. Another memory with both of my daughters is when we were gearing up for their sixth and ninth birthdays and I asked them what they would like. The youngest replied with, "an indoor pool and a bunny that poops chocolate!" Needless to say she was probably disappointed on her birthday. The soon-to-be nine year old shot just as high and with her response of, "A real pony and a new pair of butt cheeks!" Again, probably a disappointing birthday, but some great memories.

The boys haven’t left us without our fair share of shocking and funny moments. The first one that comes to mind is when we moved into our current house and finally felt like the boys were old enough to stay home alone. When we returned home they were both crouched behind the couch that they had pulled away from the wall. They though they heard a noise and concluded that someone was breaking into the house. Instead of calling us or their grandma who lived right next door, they came up with a full proof plan. They began by pulling the couch out from the wall, grabbing two butter knives (because they weren’t allowed to play with real knives was their explanation for that choice), and arming their selves with their plastic lightsabers. They laugh every time the story is brought up. I only wish I had a picture of them crouched behind the sofa. Three summers ago, when my son younger son came running into the house to tell me there were tadpoles on the pool cover I, of course, asked how many. The very eloquent 16 year old response was, "A crap ton!" To this day I still have no idea how many that is. My last memory to share is from that same son, who can always make me laugh no matter how bad my day is. He asked, "On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being playing patty cake with the devil and 10 being playing hopscotch with Jesus, how much fun did you have today?" I was laughing so hard I couldn’t even answer the question.

In a crazy year like this, where people are arguing over whether they should have to wear a tiny piece of fabric on their face, where people are stealing from and killing one another, where the elections in this great country look more like a bad reality television show than a debate, and where so many people are finding it difficult to find joy, I hope you all can be thankful for so many things this year; I hope laughter and family are at the top of your list.

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