Since 2010, the Thanksgiving after Momma passed away, my little family has served at what our church calls Feed the Need. We prepare over a thousand meals to give to families so that they can have a great Thanksgiving meal. After that first year, we were hooked and have looked forward to it every year since then.
This year was no different, so Thursday morning at 2 a.m. when Jonathan woke me up having to go out because of tummy issues (I will keep the graphics out), I was concerned our day might be messed up. Then at 4 a.m. when I begged Sound Man to take him out as Jonathan was hovering over my ear nearly having apoplexy to be let out, I was more than concerned. And, at 6:15 a.m. when he threw up on my bed, I was sure the day was ruined. Two more upchucking episodes and I knew the three of us weren't going to be able to go. Michael graciously volunteered to stay home with J-dog, even though he REALLY wanted to be there with us. He said since he only had one working arm (he had surgery two weeks ago today), it would be better for four hands to go instead of just three. Bless his heart.
So, Kiddo and I loaded up my chocolate chess pies to add to the bajillion other pies to be placed in the containers and headed out. We had almost reached the elementary school where all the cooking, plating, and boxing takes place, when my car decided to overheat. Panicked, I called Sound Man and told him what was wrong. He calmed me down and told me it would be okay to drive the short distance to the school and not to worry about it until after we were finished. If he needed to bring water later, he would.
Amazingly, my car's temperature went back to normal just a few minutes after letting it rest, so we were able to make it to the school with no more issues. After we got there, the controlled chaos that is Feed the Need took over all thought. And to add to it, this year we added worship to the mix. To say that made my heart happy would be an understatement.
Pies were cut, cranberry sauce was cupped, rolls were thrown, food was plated, containers were stacked...well, here...this shows much better how it went than I can say with words...
You can see Kiddo at :22 being handed a stack of containers (he's wearing a black shirt), and you can see me in several places (that's my gravy ladle at :34 - hee hee), but the one I saw right off was the scene where we're singing and I have my hand raised. Oh, what joy to hear that many people lifting their voices to thank the only One worthy of our praise!
It was all worth it. The sick dog, the overheating car...it almost stole my joy, but I didn't let it. Oh, and by the way, Jonathan was fine after we left and Michael brought us water for the trip home and we had no more issues. Funny, huh?
We were able to share Thanksgiving dinner with some friends of ours and finished off the day happy and full (of more than just food!). I can't wait until next year!
I hope your Thanksgiving was filled with happy memories and that you made new ones, as well!
1 comment:
What a great story! And the video, too! Thanks for showing us how to carry on even in the face of opposition. A good lesson for us all.
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