John Waite's "Missing You": A Thanksgiving memory

It was Thanksgiving of 1988, and I was going to miss my first one ever with my family back on the farm north of Coaldale.

Everyone else was going home, including my best friend Chris Vining, who was heading back to Coaldale. I, on the other hand, was not.

What could have been a lonely time, was not, and it was due to a newfound friend who organized a great evening, capped off with a walk and a memorable song.

Every time I hear John Waite’s “Missing You”, I think of that Thanksgiving in 1988.

The song
John Waite was best known for being the lead singer of The Babys when he released the solo album “No Brakes” in 1984.

It would have likely been consigned to the dustbin of history if not for one thing – the song “Missing You”. The single was recorded in February of 1984 and released in June of that year. It hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the week of September 22, 1984 and stayed there for one week, displaced by “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince and the Revolution.

John Waite would go on to be nominated for a Grammy in 1985 for Best Pop Vocal Performance Male for “Missing You”, losing out to Phil Collins for “Against All Odds (Take a Look at me Now).”.

Away from home
The start of the 1988 university year had been crazy. I was a student leader with a whole new set of responsibilities, taking a full load of five classes, and trying to keep my head above water.

It had become apparent to me early on that I was not going to be able to go home for Thanksgiving. The previous year, my first away from home at university, I did go home for Thanksgiving and it recharged my batteries. This year, it was just not in the cards.

I am not sure how I found out, but one of the other student leaders I worked with, named Shannon, was also not going home for Thanksgiving. She was quite a bit further away from home, hailing from Langley, B.C.

She was asking around if anyone knew somewhere to have a genuine Thanksgiving turkey dinner, and if anyone wanted to go.

I was the only taker.

This was a week, maybe two weeks from Thanksgiving.

Then Shannon got a hold of me one day, reporting she heard a restaurant called “David’s” had a Thanksgiving turkey dinner.

Maybe a day or two after that, she let me know that yes, “David’s” did have a Thanksgiving turkey dinner, and she got a price. It was like $17, which was still in my price range. Besides, I really just wanted to get out and even get to know Shannon a little better.

She also checked out what buses on Edmonton City Transit to take.

We were set.

Thanksgiving
We met in the lobby of Lister Hall. She lived in one tower, Mackenzie Hall, and I lived in another tower, Kelsey Hall. They were connected by the Lister Hall complex.

The main bus terminal at the time was about a three-block walk, in the heart of campus. We chatted while we walked because, aside from leadership training and meetings, we really did not know each other.

Shannon had all the routes figured out, so I just followed along. It was probably about a half-hour ride or so, but always seems longer when you don’t know where you’re going. We only had to change buses once though, which was cool.

I even think we had reservations, so when we got to “David’s” we were seated immediately.

To be honest, I don’t remember all that much about dinner, other than it was much different than at home. It all came on one plate, unlike Thanksgiving on the farm where we dished up whatever and how much we wanted.

What I do recall is getting to know Shannon better. She was studying languages, including German, which I had grown up speaking, and had aspirations of being a teacher. We talked about life as a floor coordinator, and how different it was from first year as a regular student. And we talked a lot about family.

It was just really nice.

After we settled up, Shannon had timed it so we could catch the bus back to campus.

We both had got our bearings by then. Well I had, I think she already knew the city way better than I did.

Walk home
It was a nice Thanksgiving Monday night, and as we rode the bus, we turned on to Whyte Avenue. It was a street at the heart of the arts district in Edmonton, lined with bookstores, coffee houses, and all kinds of shops offering unique items. It was also about a half hour walk from Lister Hall.

Shannon suggested we burn off some calories and avoid the turkey coma by going for a walk home.

That sounded like a great idea to me.

So we got off and walked down Whyte Ave on our way home.

I love used bookstores, and told Shannon that. She did too.

One of the best was one on Whyte Ave. It was called the Wee Book Inn.

We were approaching it so Shannon suggested we go in.

It was awesome as always, but I don’t think I bought anything.

Shannon bought the tape “No Brakes”.

“I love ‘Missing You’,” she said.

It was a song I had really liked in Grade 10 myself.

We got back to res, and went our separate ways.

I returned to my floor awaiting all my floormates returning from their Thanksgiving weekends with stories.

In the end, I had one too.

Afterwards
A few times over the next few months, I would see Shannon outside of meetings or work, and she would mention she had listened to “Missing You”, and thought of our Thanksgiving dinner.

Me too.

Parting thoughts
When you’re 18, everything seems so big and final. When I was 18, I had a lot going on, and I needed my family far, far more than I cared to admit back then.

Doing the job I did, as a floor coordinator, could be pretty isolating too.

So, it was nice not only to have a Thanksgiving dinner more personal than what they served in the cafeteria, but also to share it with someone going through the same stresses I was.

Looking back, I think the “Missing You” subliminally represented my family, and even the life I had before I was a floor coordinator.

Yet, hearing that song, reminds me of my old friend Shannon, and how her kindness made Thanksgiving very special when it could have been really lonely.