Saturday, November 20, 2010

Thanksgiving And A Half-Baked Turkey

"Be joyful always, pray continually,
give thanks in all circumstances,
for this is God's will for you
in Christ Jesus."
I Thessalonians 5:16

As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving next week here the USA, I have been remembering Thanksgivings past, and one that stands out for me took place when we lived in The Philippine Islands from 1974-76. The month of November in the P.I. is in the middle of typhoon season and we had a week of them our first Thanksgiving on the island. We decided to go ahead and cook a traditional meal, even though a typhoon was predicted to hit with over 120mph winds and a torrential rain. We had stored up on candles, water and food, and thought we had done all we could to protect our home. What we had not checked on was our natural gas supply.....so when we ran out of gas while cooking, we ended up eating half-baked turkey along with jello, rolls, and potato chips for our big feast! The kids thought it was great. Right after our unique dinner Joel left for work, as he was a meteorologist in the Air Force and was working the mid shift. The kids and I, and our live-in maid stayed in our home. When the lights went out we lit candles, and when the water came into the house under the front door like someone had put a hose up to it, we used our brooms to sweep it back out and kept up as well as we could. Our home, like most others the military lived in, were made of cement blocks which were then filled with wet cement. The roof could have gone, but not the house itself! We spent a lot of time sweeping water and praying that day. Joel spent a lot of time at work sitting helplessly before a wall of equipment that was not working due to no electricity! We gave thanks quite often for keeping us safe that day. Needless to say it is one Thanksgiving we will always remember ~ and quite fondly!

This year we will celebrate with our family, sharing a feast and fellowship with the crew and enjoying all the hugs we can get from our grandchildren. There will be no typhoons to worry about, but plenty to be thankful for!

May God richly bless each of you as we give thanks for the many blessings in our lives.

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13 comments:

Virginia said...

Thank you for sharing this wonderful story.
Much Blessings,
Virginia

Whidbey Woman said...

You will always have those memories:)
I remember a Thanksgiving, not too many years ago, when Western Washington was hit by a windstorm in the morning. Most people people lost their turkeys. A few threw them on the BBQ and found that tasted pretty good!!! Today everyone was at the grocery store- two fears 1) the grocery workers may go on strike, 2) Snow is predicted tomorrow night. I just went in to pick up a few things. I could not believe the crowds! Oh well. Got to love the season- crowds, storms and all. Happy Thanksgiving! May God bless you and yours.

dunlizzie said...

Wow. What an adventure. Sometimes those things make the holidays even more memorable and def God shows His face. I remember one Thanksgiving in Africa. We ALSO forgot to check on natural gas even though it was during a shortage due to blockade. Halfway through cooking the oven failed. We went to every place in the area but fortunately got the last tank there was to finish the cooking for about 50 guests in all. Good times. God bless :)

Nikki (Sarah) said...

that Typhone thanksgiving...wow..I'm glad you'll be celebrating with family. Have a very happy one....

Jocelyn said...

Thanks for sharing your sweet story. Wishing your a blessed Thanksgiving.

Jocelyn
http://justalittlesouthernhospitality.blogspot.com

Vintagesouthernlife said...

You have such wonderful stories to tell. Thanks for sharing.

Enjoy a Happy Thanksgiving with your family!
Blessings, Annette

Ruth said...

Have a blessed time celebrating thanksgiving with your family. Many blessings to you and yours,
Ruth

Charlotte said...

Thanks for sharing your memorable Thanksgiving with us. Thinking about the half baked turkey reminded me of the Thanksgiving over 40 years ago when I over baked the turkey. We called it a crispy critter. It was pretty good though. It was memorable. LOL
Blessings for a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Charlotte

Donnie said...

That was such a moving posst. Have a blessed Thanksgiving.

Ginger~~Enchanting Cottage said...

I can surely understand why you won't forget that Thanksgiving day.
Have a happy and warm Thanksgiving this year.
God Bless,
Ginger

MTJ said...

Hi Renee,

I keep seeing blog references to these same scriptures (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18), encouraging me to express gratitude to God as I enter in my circumstances.

Although I don't have answers, I am thanking God in the circumstance I find myself facing. I see this as an exercise of endurance.

Thank you for sharing this circumstance from your time in the Philippines. I'm praying this 2010 Thanksgiving be a blessing for you and family.

Blessings and peace.

MTJ

Jan Lyn said...

I love to hear your life stories. There is so much richness of your faith within each gem. Thank you for sharing them with us.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving!
With Love,
Jan Lyn

dominique said...

When I first read your title, I thought it said, half-baked idea! LOL! Uh...I guess I'm tired.

Great story! Totally enjoyed it!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and Joel!te