A Quiet Thanksgiving & a Lifetime of Gratitude
- Debra Flaming
- Nov 27, 2025
- 2 min read
Happy Thanksgiving!
Today feels different from the bustling holidays of years past, yet no less special. This year we’re keeping things quiet—just Dion and I heading to my parents’ home to share a simple Thanksgiving meal. For decades, they were the ones hosting our entire extended family, filling the house with laughter, cousins, stories, and the smell of roasting turkey.
Now it’s our turn to bring the warmth to them. And honestly… this slower, gentler holiday feels like a sacred gift.
A Legacy of Faith and Love
As I reflect on this season of thanks, my heart fills with deep gratitude for my parents. Their story is woven with courage, sacrifice, and quiet strength.
They arrived in the United States with little more than a suitcase—Austrian immigrants who had endured the loss, fear, and uncertainties of World War II. Yet they stepped onto American soil with hope, determination, and unwavering faith.
Psalm 100:5 says,“For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever, and His faithfulness to all generations.”
I see that promise in my parents’ lives.
Their faith shaped our home.Their resilience shaped our character. Their love shaped our hearts.
My parents raised us girls to trust God first, to cherish freedom, and to honor the blessings of this country. They sacrificed so we could grow up in a land where we were free to dream—to reach, to build, to believe.
Today, when I sit at their table, I know I will feel the weight of that legacy in the best possible way. It’s humbling. It’s holy. It’s everything I give thanks for.
Looking Toward a Full House and Full Hearts
Though today is quiet, our season of celebrating is far from over. In just a few weeks, we’ll gather with our children and grandchildren—our daughters and son-in-laws, our sons and daughter-in-laws, and our sweet granddaughters and grandsons who fill every room with joy.
A house full of little voices, laughter, and hugs is still coming.That’s the beauty of gratitude—it grows. It carries from one moment to the next.
Proverbs 17:6 says,“Children’s children are a crown to the aged.”
And oh, what a beautiful crown they are.
A Thanksgiving Prayer
As I carry the Thanksgiving meal I prepared into my parents’ kitchen today, I carry something else too: a heart overflowing with gratitude.
For God’s faithfulness, for family roots that run deep, for the country that became our home, for the blessings of children and grandchildren, and for the simple moments—quiet, humble, sacred—where love does its slow and steady work.
My prayer this Thanksgiving is simple:
“Lord, help me honor the legacy I was given by living it out with grace, gratitude, and love. Let my life point back to You.”
From our quiet Thanksgiving table to yours, may this day be filled with peace, warmth, hope, and the gentle reminder that gratitude is a gift we carry all year long.
With love,
Debra Flaming
(Daughter, Sister, Wife, Mother, Nana & Friend)
