Turkey, Turkey, Turkey; a Seasoned Citizen Looks Back

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday that warms my oldest and fondest memories of home, family and food.  I have a lot to remember:  I'm a senior citizen.  I was a college sophomore when JFK was assassinated fifty years ago.  I saw the Beatles, Janis Joplin and the Jefferson Airplane perform live (to clarify, not together).  The Beatles in '64 and '65, and Janis Joplin in 1966, with Big Brother and the Holding Company.  I saw Jefferson Airplane the same night that I saw Janis.

My first recollection of a presidential election is when Eisenhower was running for president.  I was a cub scout, and we were given silvery (plastic) medals to "get out the vote, 1952."  I decided I liked Ike, was a Republican in a Democrat household, and never looked back.  I was shocked to learn my father was a Democrat, and he was equally shocked to learn I was a Republican.

I supported Nixon against JFK in the election of 1960, but later became smitten with JFK, as he was a strong anti-communist, as was I, and for a while, I fancied myself a liberal Democrat.  However, I never voted that way, as I was too young to vote.  My first presidential vote was for George Wallace in the 1968 election, as I believed he would have the gonads to win the war in Viet Nam.  I regretted my vote on election night, when Nixon was neck and neck with Hubert Humphrey, but finally pulled ahead to win by a slim margin.  I thought Humphrey would be another liberal disaster.

Yes, through the decades, I always loved Thanksgiving:  turkey and dressing; no school; getting into mischief with my cousins; football on television; and naps.  If only all my departed relatives could be resurrected to join me once more around the table:  grandparents, parents, uncles and aunts, and even a cousin or two, all of whom are now in the next world.