food for thought

thanksgiving is less than a week away. this is my favorite holiday and i am barely able to stay in my seat with anticipation. spending time with my wonderful family, being cozy at the hearth in my parent's home, taking a hike on mary's peak where you can see the cascade mountains and the pacific ocean at the same time, watching my niece walk for the first time, listening to family & friends play music all evening, and of course eating delicious favorite dishes at all times of day and night.
i've been mulling over several ideas for how to decorate the thanksgiving table and also found a lot of inspiration from friends on flickr {as these photos show}, but this year i am going to do somethings differently. i don't know if it's the essential shambhala class i've been taking or the state of the world these days {yes, it's probably both actually} but i know at this time of gratitude for our abundance, others are suffering and have so very little. it's something i just can't ignore.

so, along with candles and acorns, this year there will be dishes intentionally left empty, so that while we give thanks for all our blessings we can also keep in mind those who are less fortunate. and there will be little envelopes with paper & mini pencils so we can write prayers and give contributions to local charities. there is an enormous imbalance of wealth in the world and it is the responsibility of those with more prosperity to recognize and assist those with less.

{a jumble of dishes representing the millions who go hungry every day found on paris parfait, from the centre pompidou by jordana shalhoub}