I’ve been on the road for a few days and today I walked downtown Fredericksburg for the first time in three months, enjoying the balmy November temperatures. I visited a couple of my favorite spots and spent some time with a dear friend while we enjoyed a cup of coffee before grabbing some takeout at my favorite Irish pub. Tomorrow I will pick up some coffee beans to take back with me and maybe catch up with a couple more friends. I’m still more comfortable navigating these streets and sidewalks than where I’ve spent the last few months, but I spent a little too much time checking the faces around me, wondering who I might run into that I did not want to see.

Of course I haven’t left yet, so I can’t say for certain that this will be the case. I could be another blubbery wreck as I head out on the interstate. But as I chatted with friends over the last couple of days I found myself referring to my little condo as “home.” My family is there, waiting for me so we can celebrate our first Thanksgiving together in a very long time. It feels like forever since we were able to do that. And I’m so very thankful we can do that, in a very small gathering of course.

This Thanksgiving I’m grateful to be able to hold my children close. I wish I could see the rest of my family, but hopefully one day in the not-too-distant future we will all be able to see all our loved ones and show them in person how much we love them. In the meantime, we’ll have to make do with text messages, phone calls, Skype, FaceTime, Zoom, and whatever other means necessary to keep those connections strong. I wish you a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.