Women’s Independent Press

By Yvonne Phillips FSII

The very first Thanksgiving Day event was not considered an event, it was a happening! Everyone came together and brought their best displays of food and sat down for a meal that provided them with soul comfort and celebration for the end of the harvest season.

Today we still celebrate with our family and friends and even those who are far away from their families usually have a family to support them, whether they are the college student or one of our military who happens to be stationed in our area.
People were integrated with the earth because they harvested their own fresh food, they baked their own breads and of course, used everything locally. They used vines to make baskets and they used gourds for drinking cups and they used straw for mats. What a concept for us now as we try to bring this back into our lives! So many look at the buy local as something new! Our décor today is mums, gourds, corn on the cob and straw and they are all of the earth.

When you think of our baked brown turkey and stuffing and acorn or butternut squash and sweet potatoes; they all represent these same traditions as in the past. Some tips that will insure that everyone has a comfortable relaxed atmosphere are:

A round table or an oblong table will create good family relationships and great conversations. No worries if you only have a square table, the softness of a tablecloth and round dishes will also help your family to have a good experience. The elements of Feng Shui are, metal, earth, wood, fire and water. If these elements are in our surrounding area in the room this will also support a good balanced environment.

If you happened to use green placemats and have a salad in that location, this would cover the wood element. If you would add to the table the white dinner napkin, it is symbolic of the metal element. The addition of lovely candles and now you have the fire element to keep people energized. By placing a goblet of water on the table, you will have covered that element also. Your food will be the best of all of these elements as it is of the earth!

Here are the basics:

Create great seating arrangements.
Lovely dinner table décor and settings. Now is the time to use those lovely dishes in the China Cabinet and the real silver.
Complete the whole process with the addition of the 5 elements of Feng Shui.

If you would like to know more about Feng Shui go to www.fengshuiabc1.com for information on classes and events with Yvonne. You can also reach Yvonne at 412-215-8247 or yvonnephillips1@aol.com