the highest appreciation

Yesterday we had Thanksgiving dinner at Moss Hill. Yes, Thanksgiving is officially Thursday, but I'll be in Arkansas then, visiting my sisters, mother,  niece, her daughters, and her new wifey. My kids will be with their other familes, and my mother-in-law will be back home in California, so we did ours early.

This was the first big holiday we've had here at Moss Hill. It was lovely, and delicious, and fun, with lots of good food and laughing. As usual, it was a turkey-free Thanksgiving, a tradition we started several years before going vegetarian, after learning about the horrendous abuses routinely inflicted upon factory-farmed turkeys. I urge everyone reading this - all 3 of you - to seriously consider having a turkey-free Thanksgiving this year. With all the other delicious food on the table you'll never miss the bird, and you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that you didn't participate in animal abuse just to satisfy your craving for a drumstick (otherwise known as a dead bird's leg.) If you want to take it a step further, you can even adopt a turkey.

I love watching the little flock of Eastern Wild Turkey that sometimes struts through our yard, although we won't be putting any feeders out for them; this species can reach an adult height of 4 feet, run 25 miles an hour, and have been known to display aggressive behavior to humans if they're in a situation where they lose their natural fear of us. So, here's the deal, Tom - I won't eat you, and you don't attack me. Fair enough?

Happy Thanksgiving, turkeys!

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget 

that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, 

but to live by them.  

~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

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