No, I didn't write any Thanksgiving stuff on social media this year. A member of our family has been in and out of the hospital since August and was in hospice. His three sons came in from across the country on Thanksgiving Day to make peace with him and say their goodbyes. He passed away shortly after. His wife died suddenly on Thanksgiving Day four years ago. The holiday is destroyed for my niece who has lost both of those grandparents on it. I've told her we'll pick something random like Arbor Day to celebrate instead.
If you have read my books as Kristi Hancock or Kristine Bria, you know that I keep it real with family business. Relationships are messy. They can truly be love/hate. A child can spend their life seeking the approval of a parent who continually disrespects them. Siblings will compete for decades believing that the other is the parents' favorite and trying to prove their worth only to discover they were loved equally. Those are just a few scenarios. While none of them describe this particular situation, it's definitely a complicated one.
So while you've been eating your turkey, we've been grieving. You'll have to forgive me for not being "Rah! Rah! Thanksgiving!" Quite honestly, I can't even think about future ones.
Meanwhile, do me a favor. Hug those close to you. Call them. Tell them you love them while they can hear it.
And I promise to get back to giving you happily ever afters. I need them as much as you do.
