This holiday has been calm. We, as a family of four, cooked and ate together. We started the day with outdoor physical play! The hubs was in football mode, me and another mama walked and ran some stairs and the kiddos ran like wild turkeys. I couldn't believe how many people were out starting a holiday morning with some good old fashioned playtime. This Thanksgiving I am thankful for new opportunities to make new traditions with my family. 

I am reminded of past holiday rituals I experienced as a child and all the family I was surrounded by. My heart and prayers are with a special woman, My Aunt Lucy, who played a major role in my life and the countless members of my larger family. This woman has the most generous heart and for all of my life I knew her door was always open for me. The memories of her and my mom together with our families has more life in them than I have the courage to write. You see, My aunt Lucy is in that phase between worlds. Her body is tired and for a lot of us we see the end as being closer than we all wanted to accept. Right now she is resting peacefully in her home with her loved ones. The door is open, as it always has been, with people coming by to lend their support and share their love and respect for this woman who created a sense of togetherness with everyone she knew. Everyone was always welcome on Market Street. My aunts house was the corner stop hangout for generations of families, the 2Trees gang, latchkey kids in the neighborhood, and anyone who needed a good laugh or a a bite to eat. I've seen my own kids running though the hallways with same enthusiasm as we did over two decades ago. I can imagine that all my aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews are flooding the house and overflowing onto the patio and porch and my Aunt Lucy is loving every minute of this presence of Love. 

My favorite story of hers is when she and my Uncle Eddie rode a Harley across country. I loved listening to Celine Dion with her and sharing our our mild obsession about her show in Vegas. The women in my family have had a profound impact on my life. They all supported me and believed in me. Their confidence has pulled me through times I didn't believe in myself. It was my aunts that taught me how to be a supportive sister, aunt, niece and daughter. It was these women that shared with all of us the love of family.

In this fragile moment I know that life ends and begins. In letting go there will be new ways to connect and carry my loved ones with me. I will be leaving in a few days to make the trip across the desert and my first stop will be my Aunt Lucy's house. No matter what, I know her door will be open and I will feel her presence. For me and everyone, I love Lucy.