It was the 24th of November and no snow. We only have two more days till Thanksgiving, and no snow? How can it be, no snow in November, impossible, it has to snow!!!
Every year that it was our turn to go to Grandpa and Grandma Bertsch's for Thanksgiving, snow was more important than anything else! Good food, there would be plenty. Cousins, more than enough, uncles, that could sled with us,enough of them, too, but what good did it do if we had no snow!!
The trip to Grandma's house started at about 11:30 Thanksgiving morning. Some of my cousins would be there by the time we arrived, and some were always late. Usually there would be four or five of my uncles and aunts and their families at the feast. So many that we ate in three shifts, first the men, then the children, and finally the women. The women were really thankful if there was some left. The meal that was prepared for us was always goose, mashed potatoes, gravy, relishes (pickled beets and cucumbers) cranberries, and Grandma's sage dressing.
When the men started to eat, it started to rain a little. They were getting concerned that it might snow. When we sat down to eat it was snowing pretty good, by the time the women sat down to eat, it was really coming down!
When the men got done eating they would go upstairs to the sitting room and visit in German; I could enter into the conversation because I grew up speaking German. I never thought about it before: what did the men who married into the Bertsch family think? They couldn't understand a word of the conversation! Grandpa always took a nap, then when he came into the room and started to visit, he would say something funny, and laugh at his own comments and we smiled respectfully. The women visited in the kitchen dining area while cleaning up. The kids and the young uncles couldn't wait until it was time for some fun!
Up to the granary we headed, to get out the homemade sleds. My grandparents lived in a creek bottom, and had the longest hills in the world, in the eyes of a 8 year old boy. While we were eating the goose, it snowed about 4 inches of wet snow. It came straight down and covered everything; so were that it packed under the rudders, making for a great ride. Did I mention that the sled was homemade? Well, you couldn't steer the sled, and the older cousins and Uncle LeRoy would like to do daring things. When the younger cousins rode down the hill, the older boys would set us on a straight course. It was a highlight of my youth: cousins, uncles, sleds, and snow. The only thing that was missing were the cousins that lived too far away to join in the merry glee that we enjoyed. To those of you that read this I wish that we could live those days over, and that you could come to the best Thanksgiving ever.
Hoping you have a Thanksgiving almost as good as this one! And don't forget to be thankful!
Every year that it was our turn to go to Grandpa and Grandma Bertsch's for Thanksgiving, snow was more important than anything else! Good food, there would be plenty. Cousins, more than enough, uncles, that could sled with us,enough of them, too, but what good did it do if we had no snow!!
The trip to Grandma's house started at about 11:30 Thanksgiving morning. Some of my cousins would be there by the time we arrived, and some were always late. Usually there would be four or five of my uncles and aunts and their families at the feast. So many that we ate in three shifts, first the men, then the children, and finally the women. The women were really thankful if there was some left. The meal that was prepared for us was always goose, mashed potatoes, gravy, relishes (pickled beets and cucumbers) cranberries, and Grandma's sage dressing.
When the men started to eat, it started to rain a little. They were getting concerned that it might snow. When we sat down to eat it was snowing pretty good, by the time the women sat down to eat, it was really coming down!
When the men got done eating they would go upstairs to the sitting room and visit in German; I could enter into the conversation because I grew up speaking German. I never thought about it before: what did the men who married into the Bertsch family think? They couldn't understand a word of the conversation! Grandpa always took a nap, then when he came into the room and started to visit, he would say something funny, and laugh at his own comments and we smiled respectfully. The women visited in the kitchen dining area while cleaning up. The kids and the young uncles couldn't wait until it was time for some fun!
Up to the granary we headed, to get out the homemade sleds. My grandparents lived in a creek bottom, and had the longest hills in the world, in the eyes of a 8 year old boy. While we were eating the goose, it snowed about 4 inches of wet snow. It came straight down and covered everything; so were that it packed under the rudders, making for a great ride. Did I mention that the sled was homemade? Well, you couldn't steer the sled, and the older cousins and Uncle LeRoy would like to do daring things. When the younger cousins rode down the hill, the older boys would set us on a straight course. It was a highlight of my youth: cousins, uncles, sleds, and snow. The only thing that was missing were the cousins that lived too far away to join in the merry glee that we enjoyed. To those of you that read this I wish that we could live those days over, and that you could come to the best Thanksgiving ever.
Hoping you have a Thanksgiving almost as good as this one! And don't forget to be thankful!
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