A Thanksgiving for the History Books...

Thanksgiving is traditionally a joyful time that we spend with family and friends. We often reflect on the goodness of God over the course of the year and eat lots of turkey, stuffing, and other yummy things. In general, it's just a great time of year...


Well, this year, my Thanksgiving wasn't the smooth, cheery holiday. Nope...it was a Thanksgiving for the history books...Quite frankly, it was almost a Thanksgiving from &@##!!


It all started on Wednesday morning at 4:30 as my cousins, my mother, and I pulled out of the yard to leave for North Carolina. The van we were riding in was scary to say the least and literally the minute after we pulled out of the yard I said to myself..."Um, I'm not sure this van is going to make it the entire way." I kept this thought to myself for the sake of protecting the van owner's feelings, but it just didn't feel right and man did I suffer for not following my gut instinct. Needless to say, a 7-hour drive to North Carolina took us 11 hours. We stopped to use the bathrooms multiple (4 to be exact) times and we stopped for lunch...that's 5 STOPS! PURE CRAZINESS!!! There was absolutely no reason to stop that frequently. NOTE: NEVER TRAVEL WITH PEOPLE WHO'VE NEVER BEEN ON A ROAD TRIP!!!!


When we finally arrived at my aunt's house, I didn't have anything to say to anybody...I got us in NC by 9:30/10:00...it took us 5.5 hours to drive through NC...again I say...PURE CRAZINESS!!!


I wouldn't have been so bothered, but the people I rode with weren't bothered in the least bit by the fact that a 7-hour trip took us 11 HOURS!! But, we made it right, so I should've been thankful...after all, at 4:30am I was questioning if this was indeed a possibility. Well, let's just say, we did make it to NC, but that's it. When the van owner went back out to drive to our hotel, the van BROKE DOWN!!! That's right, it broke down on the side of the road. What was I saying to myself..."Aw, MAN!!! I need to get back early on Friday to buy a bed at IKEA...this can't be happening, WHY ME LORD...WHY ME???" Well, I didn't find it necessary to labor over this question as there was clearly nothing I could do at that hour on the night before Thanksgiving...so my prayer simply became..."Lord, please let this van need a part that must be ordered so we can't ride back in it." GOD does answer prayer, but not without some hurt and pain along the way.

What happened between Weds. night and Thurs. morning...where shall I begin...


1. My aunt's OCD kicked in and everyone developed an attitude on some level...I think mine was a bit more extreme than everyone else...that's because I hate dealing with bullshit. In my mind, people have to learn to accept their reality...don't add to it or take from it!


2. My grandmother questioned and criticized everything I did. She questioned me about why she hadn't met my non-existent boyfriend. She fussed with me for putting bowls next the the sink and leaving a glass of wine on a TV stand...at the end of the day I told my mother that I'm no longer talking to my grandmother. If all she can do is find fault in me, then I don't have to be around her. I would be a fool to choose to subject myself to such treatment.


3. The van owner decided she was too cheap to rent a comfortable car for 5 people and her 2 weeks worth of luggage (still not sure why you need 2 full suitcases for 3 days). They wanted 5 people to ride in a FORD FUSION with all that luggage. I offered to rent a car multiple times, but she wouldn't go for it...I really just wanted to get home, that's it!!


4. I learned that I can't be completely honest with my family without hearing about it. I got in trouble with my mother so many times for speaking my mind that I lost count. What's up with my family...every time I said something I heard these words, "Dawn, that's your grandmother...you can't say that" or "It's not what you said, it's how you said it"...WHAT THE (*&$ I can say whatever I'm feeling...I'm grown. I can't help it if some people can't get with my refusal to dance around issures. I'm gong to share my honest opinion and speak my mind. For me, age is not equivalent with respect...respect is truly earned. Some folks in my family need to learn how show me a little more respect, if they'd like to receive it from me.


Without a doubt this was a Thanksgiving to remember...there was a great amount of stress felt among all of the family members...however, I was one of only a few who felt comfortable sharing my anger and frustration. I feel like a number of family members may not talk for a little while as a result of this time together.


Obviously, we finally made it home...even though it took 4-5 hours to get the rental car...that's so far beyond me!! I don't think I'll be making plans to travel on a road trip with these family members in the future...call me mean if you want to, but this holiday was too stressful and strained far too many family relationships. I feel like we all need to meet for a debriefing just to clear the air...that's not good.

Anywho, I hope everyone else had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I know mine was beyond interesting, but I'm looking forward to spending Christmas with just my immediate family!