Just because Thanksgiving comes just once a year, it doesn’t mean we only give thanks then — every day should make us thankful for something.
It is a very special holiday. No church or organization can claim it for their day. It belongs to everyone. I hope everyone got to enjoy a beautiful meal. I know there was one in Marion. Even big cities like Wichita provided dinners all over town.
I wondered if Macy’s might skip the big parade because of the cost but they didn’t. It was better than ever.
Uh, oh, here comes the Christmas rush. The stores get antsy. I think they started promoting in October. An act of kindness could do more than expensive gifts.
I remember a Christmas on the farm. Maybe I was 6 years old. My mother went out and found a small, broken tree limb. She put wads of cotton on it to make pretend snow. If I remember right, she made new dresses for our dolls. She got one made for my younger sister but somehow she didn’t get one made for my doll. Of course, I was hurt. I hope I didn’t complain.
Oranges were special as were nuts.
Times did change. All of the family landed at my parents’ home. Five or six kids to a bed. I remember all the kids were lined up on the stairway, being held back by Uncle Pete. No one was to get to the many packages surrounding the tree until Santa was ready.
Once at my daughter’s home near McPherson, my son-in-law heard noises so he got the shotgun. He found two grandsons snooping around the gifts. They found their kids and stayed put.
— norma hannaford