Carving Set

Just another little tradition I remember from long ago.

 Of course we said Grace first. “God is great. God is good. And we thank him for this food. By his hands we all are fed. Give us Lord our daily bread.”

Or was it “Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray to God my soul to take.” No, that was said in my pajamas before I climbed under the covers.

In the cupboard next to the dining room table was a red box taken out once a year. It was a carving set used for the Thanksgiving turkey.

The tradition was my father would stand and carve the first slices of what I found out later was a pre-cooked turkey from the club and placed samples of the bird on our plates.

Then all heck broke loose with the passing of string beans, mashed potatoes, gravy in their silver or fine china containers until my mother’s constant warming of the bread in the kitchen brought out the pots and pans.

I don’t know if my father’s father did the same tradition or was this just part of the show our family played? I don’t know if the carving set was a hand-me-down heirloom or a fancy purchase.

I don’t remember if I gave the carving set to my brother or just threw it away but I don’t have it anymore. It wasn’t a very good sharp knife, even with the honing rod. It didn’t hold an edge. My pet peeve are dull knives in the kitchen.

Years later I accumulated enough carving tools, even electric knives. Maybe that set in the red box began my fascination with knives?

Yet on this day of Thanksgiving (which to me just meant being out of school) the carving of the turkey was a tradition.

Then the carving set was neatly closed in their case and put in the drawer next to the fine linens and silver steak knives for another year.