Thanksgiving

Giving Thanks The Pilgrims Left

November 26, 2009 by rickety Leave a Comment

The Embarkation of the Pilgrims

I was born in England and emigrated to the United States while in my twenties. I am thankful to be living here and the people have been very welcoming and kind.

My two brothers were also able to emigrate and they and their families will join me and my family for Thanksgiving today.

Occasionally I am asked if we have Thanksgiving in England. My stock answer is always is the same:

We do have Thanksgiving in England. We give thanks those annoying pilgrims left.

About the Painting

Protestant pilgrims are shown on the deck of the ship Speedwell before their departure for the New World from Delft Haven, Holland, on July 22, 1620. William Brewster, holding the Bible, and pastor John Robinson lead Governor Carver, William Bradford, Miles Standish, and their families in prayer. Painted by Robert Weir (1803-1889).

When Speedwell reached Southampton they met with Mayflower and additional colonists. The two vessels set out on August 5 (old calendar) / August 15 (new calendar). Soon after, Speedwell began taking in water, so both were diverted to Dartmouth. There Speedwell was inspected for leaks and sealed, but a second attempt to depart also failed, bringing them only so far as Plymouth.

It was decided that Speedwell was untrustworthy, and it was sold. It would later be learned that crew members had deliberately caused the ship to leak, allowing them to abandon their year-long commitments. The ship’s master and some of the crew transferred to Mayflower for the trip. (Wikipedia)

High-resolution version (3.5Mb)
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Thanksgiving 2008 in Perry

November 27, 2008 by rickety Leave a Comment

Back row, left to right: Jill, Rick, Susan, Sarah, Derek holding Bryson, Randy, Sherie, Scott, Shauna, Kent, Alex, and Ty.
Front row, left to right: Jake, Byron, Melissa, Paul, Ashley, Adelaide, Robert, Steven, Connor.

Thanksgiving this year was at my brother-in-law Randy’s home in Perry, Utah. Steven brought an extra turkey to fry. He heated the peanut oil to 350 degrees. When the breast of the turkey reached 170 degrees it was done. It was cooked perfectly. Last year it was burnt. After we had all eaten our fill we went outside to have a group photograph with Adelaide’s new Nikon D90.

Later in the evening I blogged while some of the family played the game “Would You Rather…?” which I am glad I didn’t play. Ashley commented for the first time on a blog (mine). Others watched the Cars movie. Steven and Paul tinkered with Adelaide’s camera. And then it was time to gobble up some pie.
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Thanksgiving In September

September 28, 2008 by rickety 2 Comments

Peeling the Potatoes

Daniel is leaving for the MTC in October and from there to Mongolia for two years. Jill decided to have a Thanksgiving meal for Daniel today because he won’t be with us in November. He’ll probably end up eating some unappetizing rickety meal on Thanksgiving Day.

My assignment in getting the meal ready was to peel the potatoes. Because I was in the Army my children naturally think that I should be good at peeling potatoes. It turns out that I am but I didn’t learn the skill from my time in the Army. My family in England ate a lot of potatoes and that is where I acquired my spud abilities. Anyway I got away light because I went to help with some church membership duties.

Thanksgiving Meal

Daniel’s married siblings and their spouses joined in the feast. In the photograph above we have (left to right) Sarah, who is due in a week, Derek, Steven, Adelaide, Paul, Jake, Daniel, Rick, and Jill. All four of Daniel’s siblings were present. The meal was really good and the turkey was just right. Later in the evening we had a choice of pumpkin pie or cheesecake for dessert. I mentioned to Sarah that now that we have had Thanksgiving we don’t need to celebrate in November. She said, “O no, this is just for practice.” I want to point out here that I always ask that the potatoes be left whole but every time someone brutally mashes them. What do my readers think. Mashed or unmashed?

We Will Miss Daniel

We will miss Daniel. He is always cheerful and runs like the wind. He carried a few trophies home from his track events to the delight of his parents. He was elected Student Body Officer and made this great video for his election campaign. He diligently attends to his priesthood duties. He went out and got himself a leadership scholarship at the University of Utah. This type of behavior is a favorite with me because it potentially saves me a lot of money. But most of all he will be missed because for the last five years he has done the dishes and mowed the lawn!