Health & Fitness
A Special Thanksgiving Memory - Why It Is My Favorite Holiday
I love Thanksgiving. Far and away my favorite holiday.
One of the reasons why I enjoy this holiday so much is that it is a simple act of gathering family, friends and loved ones to give thanks for what we have and who we have in our lives.
It's not about gifts, it's not about shopping malls, it's not about Black Friday - it's about sharing and caring.
Of course, plus football and food, too.
This holiday always brings me back to a particular Thanksgiving Day that was both one of the worst days and best days of my life.
A number of years ago, while at work, I got a frantic phone call from a longtime friend that my brother Steven was the victim of a hit-and-run accident while away on business in Toronto, Canada. He sustained severe injuries where he was rushed by ambulance to a local hospital there.
Given this emergency, I tried to get as much information as I could about his condition so I could travel to Toronto to be by his side. One of his work colleagues had stayed with him throughout and kept our family updated on his condition.
It turned out that Steven would require two major surgeries the next day, one on his left knee and one on his left shoulder. His left knee had already been severely damaged from a previous accident years back.
With these events, I made a decision to fly to Toronto to be with him that Wednesday after he came out of his surgeries. He had endured almost twelve hours of surgeries and was completely banged up.
He got through Wednesday in great pain and heavily medicated, but the surgeries were deemed a success. This would begin months of excruciating recovery and physical therapy for him.
Which brings us to the next day being Thursday, our Thanksgiving Day in Toronto, which is a regular Thursday to the locals being that Canadian Thanksgiving in celebrated there in October.
He's in his hospital bed still completely banged up, and I am sitting beside him completely bummed that my big brother is in so much pain and that we are missing Thanksgiving at home.
Completely. Bummed.
This was the day we were supposed to be at our sister's house in New Jersey celebrating with friends and family, like we always do.
That morning, we sat in his small hospital room trying to make sense of everything that just happened over the last few days, and lamented about missing our favorite holiday.
At that point, my brother saw the sadness on my face at him being in such a tough condition, through the haze and fog of medication and sitting in a hospital bed for most of the week.
He then leaned over and said to me with a soft conviction:
"You know what? We're going to have Thanksgiving today."
I looked at him, and smiled faintly, admiring his resolve and conviction, but thought how the hell are we going to celebrate anything given his fragile state? He can't move, he probably has no appetite, he's stuck in his hospital bed and it's just a normal Thursday in Toronto.
He then called the hotel he regularly stays at in Toronto and asked them if they cater American Thanksgiving dinner. They replied that they did. He asked if they could deliver, they said they would.
He then proceeded to punch up probably the greatest take-out order in the history of Thanksgiving Day take-out orders. Full regalia Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings, plus wine, plus desserts, plus linens.
Not being undaunted, he then called his office and asked two assistants to go to the local Future Shop (Canada's version of Best Buy) and rent a large TV for the day.
He then called his office and invited his colleagues over at 4 pm for Thanksgiving dinner, which they couldn't believe, given his condition just two days earlier.
So, at 12:00 noon, there's a knock at his hospital room door, and his two assistants from the office wheel in a 50" projection TV. I gladly unhook his little 3" TV and giddily hook up the big TV in his room. I then dialed up the Miami Dolphins versus Detroit Lions.
The hospital staff are watching this all unfold, scratching their heads and asking "who is this man and what is he doing?"
Word quickly gets around the hospital that there's this crazy American delivering large TVs to his room, so one of the hospital administrators comes down to his room to ask him what he is doing, and his reply was "I am celebrating Thanksgiving with my brother and my work colleagues - by the way, is there any way that you can get us a meeting space for about 10-15 people?"
She replied "Yes, there is a conference room right around the corner, it has a sign that says 'SARS Resource Centre'".
He replies "Great, we'll take it!" (even though the SARS thing freaked me out a little bit, given the massive outbreak and health crisis they had there earlier that year)
At 3 p.m., a small group of people from his hotel arrive, all dressed in suits. They knock at his door and begin to wheel in hand trucks loaded with food and linens. He asked them to bring everything to the conference room and set it all up.
His work colleagues begin to arrive and are blown away by what appears to be a five-star Thanksgiving dinner unfolding before their eyes. In a hospital, no less.
I unplug the TV in his room and wheel it into the conference room, which is now fully stocked and decorated for what will be a beautiful Thanksgiving meal.
I also wheel Steven and his attached IV unit into the conference room, front and center, straight back from the TV with the Dallas Cowboys 4 pm game on.
He then announces "Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!"
We then sit along with him and have probably the greatest Thanksgiving meal I have ever had.
Not because of the 5 star food, desserts, linens or wine.
It was the greatest Thanksgiving because I was with my brother and he was going to be ok after all. We learned later that five pedestrians were hit by cars in Toronto that day, he was one of two survivors, the three others who were hit that same day did not survive.
It was the greatest Thanksgiving because his work colleagues and friends were unbelievable in helping him get through a very difficult few days, being extremely supportive of our family and anything that he or we needed.
It was the greatest Thanksgiving because of the extensive care that his doctors and medical staff at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto tended to him while he was there.
It was the greatest Thanksgiving because it went from one of the worst days to the best days due to my brother's deep love for his family and appreciation to continue with the traditions that we all enjoy and hold dear - no matter what.
It was the greatest Thanksgiving because the moments of that day centered exactly why this holiday is so meaningful to me.
And for all of these things, and many others, I am very, very thankful.
Here's to a safe, healthy and bountiful Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones.
