Ever since moving with my family to the Northwest in 1996, our Thanksgiving ritual has been the same: the drive, often in the rain, through Seattle to the Mukilteo ferry and across to Whidbey Island. My younger brother and sister-in-law moved to Whidbey in 1993, and when my family came to the area, it marked the first time that my brother and I lived near each other in over 20 years. My brother had moved out west, and I stayed east, and we did not see each other very often.

In the 90s, Thanksgiving outside of Langley consisted of at least nine of us: my wife and me with our two daughters, my brother and sister-in-law, and my sister-in-law’s sister with her husband and daughter.  As the years progressed, the children moved off to college and beyond. A year ago, my brother and sister-in-law separated, so this Thanksgiving we were down to five; my wife and I, my sister-in-law, and her sister with her husband.

The consistency and constancy of this fall ritual provides an anchor point to my life. Things change, but some things stay the same. There is much comfort in that, particularly at a time of turmoil and uncertainty in the outside world. I think all human beings need anchor points, and I know that Charles Wright serves as such an anchor in the lives of many of those who are associated with the school, including me. Anchor points not only provide comfort in troubled times, but they permit us to explore and wander, secure in the knowledge that we can return via the chain. The anchoring effect that the school provides our students permits the chain to gradually lengthen as children move through the grades, allowing the freedom to learn how to be independent while remaining secure in the knowledge that the independence does not threaten the important feeling of connectedness.

Particularly in troubled times, I feel particularly thankful for the anchor points in my life. The break that Thanksgiving provides allows time for some reflection before the calendar page is turned to December, and the sprint to the winter holidays begins.