“…nothing is infinite,

not even loss.

You are made of the sea and the stars, and one day

you are going to find yourself again.”

~ Finn Butler
(excerpt from “Saltwater”)

Thanksgiving week is here. In honor of all those things we can be grateful for (and not), I dug out one of my old Thanksgiving columns from past years. It’s good to be reminded of what matters and also what doesn’t.

By the time you read this column, many of you will be recovering from a big Thanksgiving meal with friends or family, maybe hitting stores on Black Friday for all the over-trumpeted sales. Not me—you won’t catch me near a store on that day. Bargains, forget it. There is nothing I want that badly, nor want to give someone, that is worth it.

Who in their right mind wants to get up at 3 a.m. to line up, freezing, at some big box store glaring with fluorescent lights to load a cart to the gills and run over other shoppers? Sometimes there’s a fight to the death, according to various news reports over the years, as the tradition grows (the tradition of stampedes and Black Friday sales, take your pick). I never have understood this kind of madness. To make it even worse, you have to pay for all that stuff in the long run!

Maybe it’s my innate grumpy and staid Taurus-the-bull nature, but I don’t enjoy insane crowds, fighting over plastic things, or trying to beat everybody to the prize. Heck, let someone else have it.

Seems to me the real gift is sitting around the table, sharing food, love, maybe a football game or two…just being aware of what matters most. That is indeed “some small place of enchantment to turn to,” as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings once wrote.

Local goods, craft, holiday decor, and fall produce can be found at a special holiday Saluda Tailgate Market on Saturday, Nov. 25, 1-3 p.m., at West Main St. parking lot. Many Saluda shops and restaurants will open extended hours. Please shop LOCAL! You can have a lovely meal, enjoy live music, art, craft, fresh produce and so much more right here in our small jewel of a mountain town.

Saluda Welcome Table is each Tuesday at Saluda Methodist Church from 5:30-6:45 p.m. Free and open to all; donations appreciated.

Saluda Community Land Trust (SCLT) can always use volunteers and donations are always welcome. Contact SCLT at 828-749-1560 or visit www.saludasclt.org.

Saluda Historic Depot, 32 West Main Street is open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday 12-4 p.m., online at saludahistoricdepot.com.

There’ll be a community potluck and bingo night at Saluda Center, Nov. 27, 6 p.m.

The annual Polk County Toy Run parade starts at 2 p.m. Nov. 25 from Saluda Fire Department on Greenville Street. Registration begins at 11 a.m.

Saluda Police Department/City Hall needs unwrapped toys and donations to provide Saluda children-in-need with Christmas. To ‘adopt’ a child or two, stop by City Hall or call Jessica Desiano at 828-749-2581. Donations need to be in by Dec. 18.

The annual Saluda Hometown Christmas (sponsored by Saluda Business Association) is December 8 from 6-8 p.m. An ecumenical service will be at Saluda Presbyterian Church on Carolina Street at 8:15 p.m.

The Children’s Workshop is Dec. 9 from 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at Saluda Fire Department, free for kids age 5 and up. If you’d like to be a helper, call Laura Fields at 828-749-4521.

Happy November Birthday to Rich Igoe, Rita Igoe, Karen Johnson, Nancy Barnett, Dawn Pearson, Charles Pearson, Dusty Jespersen, Gwen Garren, Stoney Lamar, Jim Boyle, Tom Ellwood, Wendy McEntire, Aaron Burdett, Jane Thompson, Candy Oakes and Bruce Hunt.

Thank you, dear readers, for reading this column. You can contact me at bbardos@gmail.com, 828-749-1153, or bonniebardosart.com.