A Thanksgiving Wish - Laugh

Dear Boo and Bubble,

Tonight is Thanksgiving eve.  Captain and I are sitting in our recliners, feet up, with the television on watching “The Voice.”  The sun has set and the small glimmer of daylight left is fading rapidly through twilight into the deep velvet darkness that this time of year brings.  My knitting needles click along with the beat of whatever song a contestant might be performing in the hopes of a turn of the chair. I have a stem glass full of Meemaw’s bad juice and the fire flickers in the fireplace while dinner cooks in the oven.  To say that I have many reasons to be thankful would be a massive understatement.  The list of my blessings could stop with just the two of you on it and I would consider myself the luckiest person in the world.

In honor of the holiday and the warm glow in my heart right now, I’d like to share with you something that happened to us this morning while we were having breakfast at Banner Elk Café.  We normally take a table in The Lodge side of the café near the coffee bar.  The space accommodates four tables and four booths, all situated closely enough for some privacy but susceptible to intrusion when the decibels reach a certain level.  The only table available when we arrived was in the middle of the room, not adjacent to a window or wall.  We frequent the place regularly enough that most of the wait staff know us.  They also have learned our regular order – a breakfast sandwich on an Everything bagel (sometimes I have them hold the bacon) and hash browns.  

After our waitress took our order, we settled into conversation between us.  Captain usually provides the topic by lifting some headline from a news app on his phone.  There, warming our hands around cups of coffee, we attempted to solve the world’s problems.  

I noticed a gentleman sitting alone in a booth behind Captain, but directly in my eyesight. He had a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of him as well as a huge pancake to the side, sitting on a plate all its own.  He pecked on the keys of his phone and an iPad sat idle next to the bacon and eggs. My  eyes dropped to a focus on my own food, but when I looked up the man had begun chuckling to himself.  Soon he basically broke into laughter that he tried to suppress so as not to bother the other patrons.  The scene seemed curious to me since there was no one sitting with him.  The thought crossed my mind that maybe he had read something on his phone or iPad that amused him.

 

“Are you going to share it?” I asked

He wiped his mouth with a napkin and answered, “I just poured the maple syrup in my coffee.”  He held up a small silver pitcher for my observance.  “Thought it was the cream.  I’m just laughing at myself.”

“That seems to be a lost art these days,” I responded, “laughing at one’s self.”

“Isn’t that the truth,” he said. “Everybody’s so serious these days.”

A young man sitting at another table nearby piped in. “Yeah, most everybody today would find somebody else to blame……like maybe they shouldn’t have put the syrup in a pitcher that looks like it holds cream.”

“Probably you should blame your parents,” Captain added.

“Yeah,” the gentleman chuckled, “like they should have taught me to be more discerning.”

We all had a good laugh at that point and the conversation wound down.  Captain signaled to our waitress that we were ready for our bill.  After paying the tab, we left – not knowing the names or anything about the two folks that had shared that moment with us.

As I reflect upon the event, I am reminded of a wood carving Mamaw Mary used to have on a table in the living room at 3 Lakecrest.  It read “Anything you can laugh at, you’re bigger than.”  I know you might consider this a very hard mantra to enact especially when you find yourself in a situation of embarrassment caused by your own devices.  But, in order to make it the most meaningful, I would add a slight adaptation. ”If you can laugh at yourself, you’re the biggest of all.”

 

I hope tomorrow brings you great joy and an opportunity to be thankful for all you enjoy.  And, please, don’t forget……sometime during the day’s happenings….to laugh….even if it’s at yourself.