Thanksgiving was a big potluck affair with about 40 or so missionaries and their families. It was held at the international school lunchroom. Some people went to a lot of effort to decorate the tables in Thanksgiving festiveness. The food was traditional thanksgiving and very tasty. Much of it is hard to find here. Hard to find: sweet potatoes, whole turkey, crunchy onions for the top of green bean casserole. Non existent: cranberries, canned pumpkin, marshmellows. So a lot of imported food got eaten!
The most homesick I have ever felt was my first Thanksgiving away...in Belgium when I was 25 years old. That was a hard one. I'm glad I tried to get excited about what IS happening here rather than simply longing for what I cannot have.
Friday we had a All Spain meeting. A bit like a church board meeting but some details actually affect us personally. It was our first and interesting though lengthy. The group seems pretty amenable to one another and kept things positive. I felt good to be a part of it.
Things I'm thankful for at this season:
That we are more stable in life than a year ago.
That I didn't suffer from homesickness this holiday.
That I have ways, like this, that are affordable to keep up with friends.
That we got a dog this year.
That we have a really nice home here and our comfortable things around us.
That I can make myself understood here and generally I can understand the answers. This makes life so much less scary.
That we have a Spanish "church home" and a US one too.
That I have people in my life who sincerely care about me.
That our budget has held up and we're making it despite the dollar.
That we're coming home for Christmas.
I could go on....Give me one thing you're thankful for in comments!
It would be strange to not have a whole turkey available for Thanksgiving. Apparently to some (Dash and T) that's not as big a deal.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that I am most thankful for this year is that NJ is a healthy and happy baby. Golden and I were both concerned that he would have a lot of the same problems we do, but so far he is about the most normal baby around.
Neecy!
ReplyDeleteSorry I had my comments on moderation. Hopefully it's all straightened out now.
ReplyDeleteI'm thankful for ham! :)
ReplyDeleteSorry that last comment actually came from Sam the turkey. (Let their voices be heard! :))
ReplyDeleteI'm thankful for the awesome weekend we had. We weren't blessed with visiting family for the holidays, but we were blessed with a great weekend with the kids.
You guys are actually coming home for X-mas? That's good to hear even though I won't be there
ReplyDeleteHow long are you going to be out here? We're going to be visiting family during most of the holiday time.
ReplyDeleteI am thankful for Dust and NJ and our great blogging friends! God is good.
ReplyDeleteWe will be home late the 13th, get a hold of us early if your leaving.
ReplyDeleteIf noone else has invited you yet .. you are (of course) welcome to attend the loves command Party on 16th. It's looking like a retro Christian Music / Mexican night.
ReplyDelete...with White Elephants - of course!!!
I invited her already! :) HA!
ReplyDelete