Dear Sunday Letter friends,
This is a super short Sunday Letter. Various distractions, website issues, and general busyness sent me veering off track. You may even wonder why I interrupted your serene Sunday morning for so little content. To this I say—Happy Thanksgiving! The truth is I couldn’t let one of the best weeks of the year to pass without at least a nod and a wave. A reminder that sometimes less really is more. That even if your mashed potatoes are lumpy and you forget the cranberry sauce altogether, it will be okay.
Thanksgiving season reminds me to look around, take stock, and say thank you—for the people at my table, the memories tucked into old recipe cards, and the simple grace woven into ordinary days.
Keeping Things Simple This Year
The bad news: no one is coming for Thanksgiving.
The good news: no one is coming for Thanksgiving.
Ha.
Our little group is scattered this year, and with no one heading home, we don’t feel compelled to fuss with the traditional feast—the kind that leaves our fridge overstuffed with leftovers destined for the compost.
With just three of us—Momma, John, and me—we’ll be doing something different. Simple. Low-key. Honestly, simple feels right this year.
And yet, while we joke about skipping turkey and settling for Cheerios or pizza or whatever sounds easy, I’m fully aware of the gift tucked inside that choice. Plenty of families don’t have the luxury of deciding what’s for dinner. Parents right here in Arkansas are struggling to put food on the table.
We decided to increase our regular donation to the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank, hoping someone dreaming of turkey and all the trimmings might have exactly that. I share this not to pat ourselves on the back—and certainly not to make you feel guilty about the feast you may be planning—but as a gentle reminder that sometimes when you “just aren’t feeling it,” what you’re really feeling is the nudge to give a little more.
An Easy Way to Make Butternut Squash Soup!
Are you a fan of butternut squash soup? Me too! But I’m not a fan of peeling and cubing such a stubborn gourd. Recently I came across a clever workaround (no idea where or who to credit!), and after trying it myself, I can confirm: so. much. easier.
This isn’t really a recipe—more like a method. I sliced the squash lengthwise, scooped out the seeds and stringy bits, and placed both halves in a roasting pan. Then I chopped a potato, an onion and an apple into big chunks and nestled them around the squash. The hollow of the squash made the perfect little bowl for whole garlic cloves (peeled). I drizzled everything with olive oil, sprinkled on rosemary, ginger, salt, pepper, and a few red pepper flakes, and roasted it at 350° until the vegetables were soft.
After letting it cool for a few minutes, I scooped out the squash and added all the roasted ingredients to a blender along with a large carton of vegetable stock and a splash of milk. The stock cools it down a bit, so just warm it back up on the stove or in the microwave.
Voilà! Instant cozy comfort.
Late November
I like the way nature gracefully downshifts in late November. Our garden that buzzed and bloomed all summer is preparing to rest. Leaves fall, revealing the homes of birds and squirrels.
The birds grow quieter, too, trading their bright chatter for soft rustles in the boxwoods. Late November is nature’s gentle reminder that rest is not only allowed but necessary. While the world keeps turning, slowing down brings its own kind of beauty.
Things Momma Says:
My phone doesn’t recognize me since I got my hair cut.
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As we head into the week ahead—whatever it looks like for you—I hope you find a little space to breathe, a light to hold onto, and something small to be thankful for.
Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.
With my sons scattered now, Jim and I resorted to a Marie Callender’s turkey TV dinner. Excellent. With a candle and a glass of wine, it’s a feast. Now that I’m alone, it’s still a late-in-life tradition. Even when company comes, it’s TV dinners, with a can of cranberry sauce added. No hours cooking in the kitchen, no hours cleaning up. We play games and enjoy life. And don’t gain weight.
Our plans changed last weekend when we got the green light that Brad is doing so well that they want us to go to Atlanta for Thanksgiving! We haven’t seen them since spring, and I can hardly wait to make my mother’s cornbread dressing with Maria!
Happy Thanksgiving to your little party. I bet it will be fun!
I’m loving reading your books and blog. Our friend, Dorothy, introduced me to you and I’m so glad. I’m 82, so I could relate to Bernice😊.
Headed to Blowing Springs to camp and visit youngest in Bella Vista. We are blessed to get all our brood home once a year after Christmas, so we spend Thanksgiving here so youngest son has “his” family there too. Blessed Thanksgiving to all!
Years ago, when discussing Turkey Feasts gone by, , my wife and I agreed that eating leftovers late in the day after legions of people finally left, was almost the best part of Thanksgivng. In order to eat leftovers, of course, they must come from a major feast, and fromt hat time on, we have cooked first one, and then up to thirty full turnkey dinners and enlisted all friends and family to help prepare, and deliver full turkey dinners to the homes of folks who had no one else, or means to make their own.
Following the last delivery, we would all scramble through the kitchen gathering spoons full of potatoes, dressing, cranberry sauce, wings, thighs , and other culinary treasures. Oh, and pies. Everybody wins on a day like this.
Cogatulations on your good efforts to make somebody’s otherwise dreary day a pleasant memory.