Our kitchen counter is filled with foundations for two Thanksgiving side dish staples: green bean casserole and scalloped corn.
Don’t get us wrong, turkey is the main attraction, but in our minds the sides always have the starring role in this annual tradition.
Come Thanksgiving morning, we’ll wake up early and prepare three pans of each. Two will get delivered to our church by 10 a.m. for the community dinner it hosts, and one of each will stay here to serve at our family get-together.
The food is fantastic, but that isn’t what gets us excited about this holiday. What we look forward to the most is our family and the day that calls everyone to pause and give thanks.
Just stop and be thankful.
How appropriate is it that Thanksgiving is in November, which also is National Family Caregivers Month?
Perhaps that’s how they planned it when deciding which month to set aside to celebrate caregivers.
The National Alliance for Caregiving reports there are more than 44 million Americans who care for a family member, friend or neighbor. These are the selfless people who support a loved one with managing their health or disability.
This is us. Every day.
Sure, we both have MS and live with visible and invisible disabilities, but we serve as each other’s primary caregiver through it all.
The reality is we couldn’t make any of this life together without the unwavering support from so many others. Our family. Friends. Medical professionals. Physical therapists. Random people we encounter in public.
These people and so many others are our caregivers, and to you all we say a heartfelt “Thank you” for everything you do to take care of us in our journey together and our life with MS.
Thanks to every single caregiver. On Thanksgiving and every single day of the year.
Touching tribute to those in our lives. (I missed out on the green bean casserole this year!)
Thanks for checking in, Doug! But don’t deny yourself: Green bean casserole isn’t just for holidays anymore 😉