Holidays come and go and with regularity. We work hard to keep up with the decorating and un-decorating for one, and quickly moving to the same practice for the next one. There seems to be some that motivate a bit more energy and creativity, maybe a bit more pomp and circumstance, but they’re all days of remembrance and commemoration that deserve a pause and celebration — people, events, service to country and man, and/or special accomplishments.

A week ago, we honored and celebrated all the veterans of this country. There were special activities, services, and ceremonies held in celebration of the commitment and service of those who spent/spend time in any one of the five branches of the military of our nation. Some local businesses offered discounts at coffee shops, and local restaurants for those who served, to say “Thank you” to our veterans. It was fitting and proper for us to celebrate this day in any, or all of these ways.

This Thursday, we’ll celebrate the day which I have come to think of as a forgotten holiday, stuck on the calendar between the glitzy light shows, and outdoor home displays, of Halloween and Christmas. It seems to me, at times, that Thanksgiving’s motto is the “let’s hurry up and get it over with so we can go shopping” holiday.

While penning this column weekly for the past nine-plus years, I’ve tried to say something about many of the upcoming holidays or special days of the year, maybe not each and every year, but regularly. I’ve tried to include Martin Luther King Day, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Mothers Day, Memorial Day, Fathers Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Halloween, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day as days on which to comment, but have feared becoming too repetitive year after year. Then it occurred to me that because these days are holidays, and days of remembrance and commemoration, and are meant to be repeated, then the solemnity, ceremony, sentiment, and meaning of these days deserve to be, and become valid excuses, for repetition. It’s imperative that we convey our gratitude and appreciation as much as possible, and honor all their commitment, their devotion. So, I ask that you please indulge me as I speak of what I call, The Forgotten Holiday.

This Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, as we’ll be preparing for a huge feast with a houseful of family and friends, I’ll make sure I contemplate what the day will mean to me.

I’ll first thank my maker for, and think of, my wonderful wife for the love, companionship, friendship, and support she’s given to me these thirty nine years we’ve been married, and 38 we’ve been husband and wife. Trust me, when I say, all that’s been no easy task, especially lately, as it has seemed like anything that can go wrong, has gone wrong, but fortunately they’ve been things that are fixable, though sometimes I’ve forgotten that and haven’t been the most pleasant, yet she’s stood beside me and never left my side.

Next, I’ll be thinking of, and thankful for, our three amazing children who’ve left the nest, but not our hearts, and have brought us so much pride, and honor, achieving the goal we hoped they would, by becoming good, decent human beings. As a parent, teacher, coach, and volunteer, I always tried to emphasize to those I’ve worked with, that as adults, people weren’t going to look at how high their grades were in school, though that will be important when trying to get the job they’d like to get, and people won’t look at how great an athlete they were in school, or how much money they make, or how cool a car they drive, or what kind of house in which they live, as much as what kind of a person they became, and we are proud of the people our children have become. We will also be thankful for the companions and spouses in Chasy’s, Chrissy’s, and Jon’s lives. Thanks, Richard, Jeff, and Erica for being so important to, and loving, supporting, and taking care of, our children. I’ll also be thankful for their children, Justin, Jeffrey, Kolby, and Joshua, and Chasy’s grandson, Xavier, for bringing so much pride and love to our lives. I will be, as I always am, very thankful for all the love and sense of purpose this entire family has brought to Sally and me.

As the aroma of Thursday’s wonderful feast tickles my nose, I will think of and thank both of our parents, though not still with us, but forever with us in our hearts, for teaching us how to be good people and how to work hard for what we need and want, and for giving us sage advice that we could pass to our children, and they to their children.

As I think of the first syllable in Thanksgiving on Thursday, I’ll be thinking of all of both of our families, our siblings and their spouses, our nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents, be they still with us or looking down on us, and we’ll be thankful for their love, support, and especially, just for being in our lives.

Instead of watching the NFL pregame show on Thursday, I will be pondering all of my and our friends who have been so special to us — from those we see and do things with regularly, to those whose path crossed with ours just once or twice, but the memories of our encounter has stuck in our minds and hearts, and will stay there forever. I will re-pronounce my appreciation that they’re all in our lives, and that we are thankful that they’re so special to us.

Before food and football, I’ll look back on my years and be thankful for the opportunities I have had as a husband, a parent, a teach, a coach, an umpire, a writer, and a volunteer. I am so grateful to, and for, all those who shared those opportunities with me, and also to, and for, those who allowed me to have those opportunities and supported me doing them, and allowing me to share them with my children, students, athletes, game participants, readers, and those in the groups where I volunteered.

And on Thursday, I will express my gratefulness for the food on our table, the clothes on our backs, the roof over our heads, the opportunities we have to do what we enjoy in our free time, and I will also pray for those less fortunate to have even a fraction of what I am fortunate to have.

If I look back at my 65-plus years on earth, and also at this narrative, and even in spite of the last month which has been semi-synonymous with the definition of Murphy’s Law, I can also sing the same lyric with just a slight change of the first part trading “Some of it’s magic,” to “Most of it’s magic.”

I certainly do have lots to be thankful for and I’ll drink a toast to that on Thursday while wishing a Happy Thanksgiving to all! Savor the day, friends. Don’t let it “get over with” too fast.