SATURDAY STORY - NOVEMBER 21, 2020

Saturday Story - November 21, 2020A

Thanksgiving 2020

It had been a long year for Ellen.  Morris, her husband of 59 years, was one of the first COVID-19 patients to die in Georgetown Texas.  Ellen couldn’t even be with him as he died.  Morris was a good man, a hard worker, loved his wife and family, and yet at his hour of death, he was almost alone with only medical staff around him and no loved ones.  His funeral was small - just a minister, an urn with his ashes, and a camera streaming his service to his family and friends.  Ellen had gone to the funeral home with mask, gloves, and doused with alcohol hand-wipes.  The ashes were sealed for burial back in Nebraska sometime “when this damn pandemic is over” so said the funeral director at Reed and Fish funeral home.

The pandemic had caused her son Eric to get laid off.  Her daughter-in-law, Barb, Eric’s wife had to teach school from home from the kitchen table by a computer.  Their son, Josh, was a senior at Southwestern University in Georgetown finished his senior year at home taking online classes.  There were no activities, no senior parties, no recognition of his achievements.  And, to make matters worse, Barb, on one of her few trips to school bumped into a colleague who two days later was COVID positive.  So, Barb was to quarantine at home.  Fortunately, her COVID test was negative, but seemingly there can be a period of incubation of the virus.  Eric was trying to make some money doing yard work and in the last few weeks, he was hired by several folks to put up Christmas lights. 

But, of course, that wasn’t all.  Her best friend back in Nebraska, Ida Spaight, also had died this year; another good friend, Doris Winston had cancer and the prognosis wasn’t good.  

Ellen and Morris had moved to Georgetown two years ago.  Because Eric and Barb were close, they picked Georgetown.  They had visited over the years and liked the small-town feeling, although that was passing by pretty quickly as Austin kept growing and putting pressure on Round Rock, Cedar Park, Leander, and Georgetown for the northern suburbs to keep growing.  They started attending the First Baptist Church (since that was where Eric and Barb attended).  They found the social bridge group and played with them a few times.  Ellen went a few times to the ladies gathering at the church - but that stopped with Morris’ illness - and really stopped with COVID.  Even now, at Thanksgiving time, the church service was streamed online as the church wanted to be very safe and protect their members.

They kind of knew their neighbors, they said hi when they saw them in the neighborhood.  

*****

So, when Thanksgiving popped up on the calendar, Ellen really wanted to be with people.  But, Eric and Barb said, “No” to having Ellen over for Thanksgiving or for Ellen to host Thanksgiving.  

Eric has said, “Mom, we love you.  Every other year we’d have a big Thanksgiving feast, with you and Barb’s folks, but not this year.  Barb is still isolating - and although she doesn’t seem to have any symptoms, she could be carrying the virus.  When this is all over, we’ll have a big feast and celebrate - but that last thing I want is for you to get COVID.”

Ellen knew how bad COVID could be from Morris’ death.  She shuttered when she heard it.  She was really torn - she wanted a Thanksgiving feast so much, that even if she caught COVID, and died a week later, it would be worth it; but she knew better than that.  Life does have it’s disappointments - and to miss Thanksgiving with family - and have several (she hoped for at least twenty more) in the future, would make up for it.  She smiled at the stories they all would tell in the future of the “Great Thanksgiving Bust of 2020”!! 

But, she could have a mini-Thanksgiving menu - and then spend time on the computer with Eric, Barb, and Josh; plus Candace, Rick, Abby, and Leah in Hastings, Nebraska; her sister and family in Lincoln Nebraska.  Even if she couldn’t hug them, she could at least see her family and tell them she loved them so much, and that God was still faithful.

*****

The weekend before Thanksgiving, Ellen prepared a menu. She would have turkey - but a “boneless turkey roast”.  Well, that would make some things easier - no roasting pan, no basting, no thawing the frozen turkey in the sick, no making sure she avoided salmonella with safe preparation.  

She discarded the idea of dressing (or stuffing).  In Nebraska and in her family, it was always called ‘dressing’.  She didn’t care what they called it in Texas.  She loved dressing but for one person, without a turkey cavity to fill, it could just go by the wayside.  

Green-bean casserole was an obvious choice.  It was Thanksgiving, after all, the only time of the year for green-bean casserole.  <Period>  Cranberries?  She opted for one of the premade cranberries relishes at the local HEB grocery store.  

She was almost ready for her own personal feast of Thanksgiving.  Just one stop.  There was only one month out of the year when she had dairy other than cream or milk for cooking - and this was the start of that month.  In the dairy section, she found the egg nog and got the half-gallon size.  She went out through the 12 items or fewer checkouts.  Living alone generally meant fewer trips to the grocery store and smaller grocery bills.  (Of course, that was more than balanced out by her trips to the HEB pharmacy!!)

*****

She didn’t need to get up at the crack of dawn on Thursday.  She could watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in leisure - until she realized that with COVID, the parade was probably canceled.  Oh well, they would probably run some highlights of previous parades.

****

Monday of Thanksgiving week, she poured herself into her Christmas presents.  She was crocheting coasters and pot-holders for her family and friends.  It seemed strange that she could have the window open with the outdoor temperatures in the low 70s on Thanksgiving week.  In Nebraska, they would have had some snow by now.  Likewise, her plants under her front picture window were still growing and flowering.  Ellen thought maybe this made up for those 100 degree days in July and August.  

****

Monday evening about 5:00 as the sun was starting to set, there was a knock on Ellen’s front door.  Who could that be, she asked herself.

Back about 6 feet from the door was a grey-headed man about her age, with one of those boring blue masks on.  He seemed familiar to Ellen, but with the mask, she wasn’t quite sure who it was.

“Hi,” the visitor said.  “I’m Richard Bauer.  I’ve met you at First Baptist Church a couple of times.”  

The light dawned a little for Ellen.  “Please come in Richard!!  I’m glad you stopped by.”

She pulled the door open for Richard to come in and pointed at a chair, but Richard didn’t sit.

“I’m actually here on a mission”, Richard said.

Ellen thought, what kind of mission is she on? 

Richard continued “I think your daughter is in Hastings Nebraska, is that right?”

Ellen answered kind of quizzically “Yes, that is true”.

Richard kept going “And, she teaches at Robert Johnson Elementary School?”

Again, Ellen wasn’t sure where this was going.  “Yes”.

Now Richard started to get to the point.  “Well, my daughter is the Principal of that Elementary School.  Somehow my daughter and your daughter have realized that both of their mothers are almost neighbors in Georgetown Texas.  Your daughter indicated to my daughter - by the way, her name is Erica - that because of COVID you aren’t going to be with your son or any family for Thanksgiving.”

Ellen nodded in agreement but didn’t say anything.

Richard then added “I’d love to have you come to my house for Thanksgiving dinner.  I’m alone since my wife died and I’d love to have company and since I’ve heard that you are alone and that our daughters have been scheming to get us to know each other, it would be a good time.”

Ellen laughed in surprise.  “So, from 800 miles - our daughters have been planning on us getting together for Thanksgiving.

Richard laughed too.  

But, it was now Ellen’s turn to surprise Richard.

“Well,” she began. “I went out today and bought groceries for my own Thanksgiving Dinner.  If you don’t have anything planned yet, I could make us dinner here”.

Richard’s eyes grew wide and he said “That would be amazing.  I’m an okay cook but Thanksgiving Dinner might be a stretch for me.”

Ellen told Richard of her menu ideas.  Richard said he could get a pie at the HEB grocery store.

They set a time to meet on Thursday.  It was going to be a real Thanksgiving Dinner after all.

As Richard walked away, Ellen realized she was really going to make mashed potatoes and dressing after all!!

*****

So, who knows if romance can come from this, or just becoming great friends with many things in common.  I do know that on Friday after Thanksgiving, Ellen went to Richard’s house and together they cheered the Cornhuskers to an upset win over the Iowa Hawkeyes, (and ate left-over turkey).  

Happy Thanksgiving my friends.  It is a strange year for Thanksgiving.  We have been urged not to have big gatherings, so maybe just two people from Nebraska sharing the holidays is enough for the blessings of the season to come through.

Love Wins!!

Hugs!!

Karen