×

Counting blessings starts with the kids table

Karen Wils Tyler with his “turkey time” keepsake.

ESCANABA — It isn’t about Pilgrims, pies or parades.

Golden brown, Martha Stewart perfect turkeys, feasts and festivities have nothing to do with it.

Our calendars tell us that Thanksgiving is a national holiday. But the Norman Rockwell family Thanksgiving is getting to be pretty much a thing of the past.

Some folks say it’s the forgotten holiday. Americans are too busy to cook and mash their own potatoes.

Yet, in the recesses of Upper Michigan a glimmer of the old-fashioned Thanksgiving, complete with home grown squash and handpicked cranberries, lives on.

This delicious holiday is all about giving and not getting.

Over the years I’ve been very blessed to be able to share many memorable Thanksgivings with family and friends.

Steeped in traditions — like walking to church while the men were deer hunting, baking pies and breads, peeling tons of potatoes, setting up a banquet hall in the basement and filling the punch bowl — Thanksgiving day was made fun by teamwork.

Every year there was some new relish or salad or some different dried floral or harvest decorations. And who can forget the year Aunt Sandy made those totally wonderful turkey shaped treats out of chocolate striped cookies, marshmallows and candy corn.

I never realized it at the time, but the most important place and the most important part of our Thanksgiving Day celebration was “the little kids table”.

Many families have had to set up a folding table for the overflow at Thanksgiving, which was usually the youngsters.

The “little kids table” for many years at our house was a little wooden picnic style table that my Dad had made for us. Mom made it special by covering it with white paper. Then she encouraged the children to draw “things that you are thankful for” on this table cloth.

Crayons carefully traced little hands to make turkeys. Stick figures wearing pilgrim hats and others wearing feathers and moccasins filled the little table top.

Grade school kids printed “I am thankful for food…my brother… friends…my dog. And someone always would draw a big ten point buck deer.

The “little kids table” may have been the noisiest table, and it had more spills and mess than the other tables, but it was by far the most fun table.

More pictures were taken at the “little kids table” than at Ma and Pa’s table or any others.

It may have lacked sharp knives or hot candles, but the “little kids table” was without question the most elegant and most important.

Children bring so much joy to any family gathering.

Thanksgiving is not about fancy. It is about appreciation. The tradition of counting ones blessings starts at the “little kids table.”

Giving and sharing and being grateful has to be taught at a young age. So if your family has a “little kids table” take a minute or two to sit with the youngsters and draw or talk about just one thing that you are thankful for this year.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

COMMENTS

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today