Page 62 - How We Lead Matters

Thanksgiving Dinner

My mother never seemed to miss an opportunity to do a good deed as she
went along her way, even when her activities became more limited in later
years.
When she realized that her women’s club was meeting the day before
Thanksgiving one year, she mobilized her friends to help stock the commu-
nity food shelf for the holiday. All committed to bring groceries to the meet-
ing. I had volunteered to pick her up since she recently had stopped driving.
Arriving late, as I often did, I found that all the other women had left. I was
anxious to get my mother into the car and on the road to make my dinner
engagement.
The ladies obviously had taken their call to action very seriously, as the
foyer was heaped with boxes and bags of food. Suddenly the hostess realized
that she didn’t have a way to get the food to its destination in time for
Thanksgiving dinner.
There I stood with my SUV running in the driveway.
As my mother and I drove to the food shelf, I made it “lovingly” clear
that this detour in my schedule was an inconvenience, especially with a
snowstorm brewing. How could it be that they hadn’t planned this better?
We drove downtown in a chilly silence. As we approached the food
shelf, I was shocked to see a line of people—mostly women—encircling the
building in the cold. I had had no idea the need was so great.
I knew then that I wasn’t late after all.

Marilyn Carlson Nelson 45