thankful for Thanksgiving leaves :: The Joy Challenge

Yesterday, Nester Smith did a fabulous job blogging about Pottery Barn Hacks for Thanksgiving.  Might want to check it out.

In it she included this picture … pretty isn’t it?

When I saw the picture in the blog, I remembered something we do every year at the Davis Thanksgiving table. And it has to do with those craft paper leaves.

Years ago, when our my middle daughter, Emily, was like 17 she made some leaves for our Thanksgiving table. She was like 17 … now she’s almost 21.

*tear*

Help … I need to catch my breath. Okay – blog interruption – I’m posting a before and after here.

Emi at 17 in Barcelona. (Note: Take that school trip with your kids even if you feel like you can’t afford it!)

Little Emi at nearly 21 at Baylor Homecoming (Note: Drive in for the day even if it’s just to go to the Homecoming parade and take pictures of your kids and their roommates!)

Sniff. Sniff. Okay …

So little Emi gathered various leaves outside, traced them on brown craft paper and cut them out. Then I stamped them with a stamp I picked up at Hobby Lobby and wrote the name of one person in our family on the back of each leaf.
Each one of the leaves has the name of a person in our family for a reason. We place them name side down on the table and after the meal, everyone draws a leaf. And whoever you draw – you affirm. Out loud. Around the table. No matter how goofy it seems.

There are always tears … with much gratitude.

The moral of this blog is:

The people you love the most, grow old and move on too fast. And I mean your children … and your parents. Affirm them this Thanksgiving, while you have the chance.