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One of the many things I am thankful for is the fact that YVI has gotten a tremendous amount of support this past year, and have done some important things, such as pushing petitions and a letter writing campaign for some kids who needed better protections and treatment than what they had been getting not just personally, but through the court system as well. Some pushes were more successful than others, but, just because not everything went as planned does not mean we should give up in helping our abused children. The fight continues, hopefully with bigger and better things in 2017.
While we are all enjoying our Thanksgiving meals, please remember to share with your dining table what all you are thankful for, because we only live once, and tomorrow isn't guaranteed. Even if these can be huge, like our feast today, the roof over our heads, and family gathering around the table, or even the smaller things, such as liking what we have, it's all worth being thankful for. But also please remember, holidays often bring about an escalated level of violence toward those who are being abused. Because schools are closed, businesses let out early, etc... The availability of those who are abusers is now greater, and there are plenty out there, especially children, who may dread the holidays. I'd like for these people to be remembered in hopes that they are one day closer to safety and redemption, as opposed to the emergency rooms.
So many people are going without in this sad state of the economy. While I am remembering these people, who may be homeless, very destitute, or very lonely, that they go to places like the Racine Festival Site to get their free Thanksgiving dinners, so they can have people to be around, without having to be embarrassed or shy about being there, since it is open to the public. I am thankful for these places and the people who make it happen.
I am also thankful for not only my family at my home, but, my friends out in the community, not just here in Racine, but all over cyberspace, who are a part of my greater extended family. While life is not always happy and we encounter a lot of roadblocks, I am thankful for my inner strength and ingenuity to help push me into tomorrow, to continue the advocacy for our abused children.
A big thing that I am also thankful for, is that we live in a culturally diverse place, where we can celebrate all cultural traditions. I just wish that I had authentic recipes from these various cultures.
I am fortunate for whom I had sitting around my table. I had my son, my husband. our housemate, his mother, and my adopted brother. We had a good meal.
The only thing I wasn't so thankful about, is the fact that Mr. Terrance Gerin, who is known as Rhyno in professional wrestling, did not win his election for Michigan State Assembly. I would have voted for him, if I could, he is not the stereotype of what a professional athlete would be as a candidate. He did very well for his first run, and hopefully, he will run again, and will do much better next time. But, no time to worry, it's a holiday. Eat up and enjoy!
Our housemate did the turkey, with his special spicing of the turkey, along with stuffing the turkey with a halved onion, a cut up carrot, a couple sticks of celery, a half an apple, and a half of a lemon. The turkey was moist, all the way through, with a nice golden color and very crispy on the skin. He also made the gravy, and that was good, too.
My husband made deviled eggs, and set up the veggie tray which included radishes, baby dill pickles, and celery sticks stuffed with cream cheese and others with peanut butter. Then he helped me a lot, too. My son kept everything clean, and helped each person as needed, along with my husband being my gofer.
I made 4 pumpkin pies, which came out perfect, and this was the 1st holiday in 18 years that I didn't do other pies. Apple is my favorite, but not this year, since we hosted. I also did green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, and squash with pecans. I used Truvia because our housemate's mom and I are both diabetic, and it was good with the sweet potatoes and squash. Since we weren't using the stuffing to go IN the turkey, I used the neck bone and my special mix to make a turkey broth, and made it on the side, and surprisingly, the stuffing came out better than ever. Cool, huh?
Anyway, we also have another visitor, which we found while waiting in the parking lot for my adopted brother. A very cute, very sweet little black kitten, about 6-7 months old. She is used to people, and obviously, had been with people, though due to the couple of burrs on her, she's been outside for at least a few days. Sad... She's cuddly and is so sweet. I am hoping that someone will want to take her home.
Please email me, at lika.yvi@gmail.com - please put "little black cat" in the subject line, so I know what you are emailing about. I hope someone takes her, she's a very good cat.
That's my son, with the cat. She looks bigger than she really is in this picture. She really is sweet...
Happy Thanksgiving, and stay blessed, people!
