RELAXED, RENEWED AT THANKSGIVING FAMILY REUNION, video included

Kids messing around and having a fun time after not having seen each other for a long while. They are T-posing (THEIR word, not mine--ed.) and singing Christmas songs to summon the Thanksgiving spirit(?) They're dabbing. In doing that, they accent the spirit of Thanksgiving to the entire family, adults included.

In a way, their spirit of fun and thankfulness is akin to that of their common ancestor, who came to America as a refugee from religious persecution in England.  The ship: the Mayflower.  Date: 1620. The name of the ancestor: John Howland.  Seven of the eight family members gathered in 2018 descend from  Howland.

During that first Thanksgiving 398 years ago, certainly Howland also would have dabbed. Maybe he spoke of his thankfulness that someone was able to throw him a rope when he was washed overboard by a huge wave in an Atlantic storm! Certainly he had other grateful thoughts too but his rescue from death by drowning had to be at the top of his list.

Mayflower in Plymouth Harbor, by William Halsall

(In public domain via Wikipedia)

Back to Newberg, Oregon, 2018. The adults were dabbing too.  The day was punctuated by tales and laughter all afternoon and into the evening. We savored the great food, lovingly prepared. Eventually, four adults said their goodbyes and drove off through the dark, rain-soaked night to their homes miles away. The other seven stayed on for the night. The house was packed, like the Mayflower. Three adults slept in beds. Four kids slept on the living room floor.

Bottom line: a wonderful break filled with fun and thankfulness--a relief in a time of American and global social and political storm.

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Special thanks to grand-daughter Jasper, who guided me through the video-posting process. It's a first for "Growing Green," an attempt on my part to enhance this blog's value to you, the reader.  DR