I don’t think a lot about Mom anymore – it’s not that I don’t think about her, it’s just that the thoughts I have now are fleeting thoughts that often bring a smile to my face.  But with Thanksgiving coming up, for some reason I’ve been thinking of her more and more…I don’t know why.  It’s not like Thanksgiving was her favorite holiday or anything; maybe it’s because her birthday is in November.

Anyway, on Holidays of Importance, Mom always went all out.  She started about a week before, and boy, could she set a table!   She had Irish linen table clothes that to be painstakingly washed and ironed days before the holiday.  Diane and I were pressed into service to clean and polish all the sterling --  from flatware to candlesticks to her sterling tea service. 

Then about three days before the event, she Set The Table.  First a liner beneath the linen table cloth, then we set all the place settings with the flatware (and let me tell you, there wasn’t a utensil Mom did not know how to use and where to place correctly).    Then out came the cut glass relish trays and salad bowls to match the Waterford cut-glass goblets at our plates.  Then her antique Meissen platter for the turkey and dressing.  It was an Event.  We always dressed for the occasion.  In fact in the photo below, Diane is sporting her favorite Thanksgiving outfit.  Dad took us shopping and we picked out an outfit.  Unfortunately Diane bought a mini-dress that did not meet Mom's approval (way too short),  so Mom cut it off and made into a shirt!

Mom was born in 1925 into a farming family in South Dakota.  She was the last of 4 children; her mom was close to 50 when she was born.   Her family moved to Phoenix when she was still a toddler.  Her dad had lost an arm in a threshing accident, and he became a dairyman in Phoenix. 

When the Depression hit, the family lost everything:  Mom remembers her dad selling the cows off one by one.  It got so bad that Mom moved to town to live with a family where she worked as a  maid and companion to their daughter.  In fact, Mom never graduated high school.

And that really affected her outlook on life.  She worked hard to better herself -- she learned how to dress and bought the finest clothes; she learned impeccable manners; she taught Diane and I the same things.  But over the years, I've let a lot of these traditions go by the wayside.  I still KNOW how to set a killer table, but I'm just too worn out and short on time.  I am sorry that I didn't work harder to carry on Mom's traditions...but oh, well.  Happy Thanksgiving!