Today is Thanksgiving. It is a beautiful 80 degree day out here in Battambang, Cambodia and school is still in session. I have tried to explain Thanksgiving to my students about a hundred times this week. We eat turkey, “What’s a turkey?”. We watch American football, “what’s American football?”, we sit around a big table and stuff our faces with as much food as possible… meanwhile every kid around here gets a small portion of rice and fish if they can afford it. I feel spoiled.The whole holiday does not make sense. I didn’t even want to get started in the actual history of pilgrims vs. Indians because Lord knows my students would really think I am crazy.
So as I pondered how to get in the holiday spirit and help my students understand this strange celebration back in the states, I began to teach them what it means to be thankful. We made lists of things of things, people, and places that we loved in our lives. My classroom’s list went something like this: my pencil, my teacher, food, my parents. They are 7 so I knew it wasn’t going to be too crazy, but as I sat there in the classroom it really hit me that my gratitude list has changed drastically since just last year. Although it most definitely does not feel like the holidays (which honestly makes it easier to be away), I am still trying to take the time to appreciate everything and everyone that got me to this place. So without further ado, here is my Thanksgiving gratitudes and it is dedicated to YOU. You as in my supporters, my family, friends, and acquaintances who believed in me enough to get me here. You are all the people I am most grateful for because without your love and encouragement I wouldn’t have the guts to take a journey like this. Without your investment in my faith and showing me who God is I wouldn’t be willing to leave it all behind to serve Him around the world. Without the long hours of listening to me talk about the race while I was in preparation and your time asking a million questions, I would not be here. From the bottom of my heart I am so so grateful for all of you.
2017 Thanksgiving Gratitudes (living abroad version):
Shower heads
Water pressure and hot water
Toilet paper that I do not have to bring into the bathroom myself
A western toilet
When the sun shines all day so my laundry can dry on the roof
When I am provided a mattress to sleep on the floor instead of my sleeping pad
Places that take credit cards
Toothpaste that doesn’t taste like the salty ocean
Real pour over coffee
Salad.. any vegetables really.
Water filters
ICE
Deodorant
Domesticated dogs
Traffic laws
Fans
Looking like a girl!!!
Lice shampoo
Native English speakers
Data plans on cell phones
Cloth napkins
Back up generators
Clean hospital beds
Paved roads
Seat belts & air bags
RAID
Air conditioning
Pharmacies who speak English
Washing machines
DISH WASHERS
Baby wipes
Dry shampoo
Sports bras
Probiotics
Cheap asian markets that have everything for less than a $1!!!!
My education and teachers who implement discipline lol (not a thing in other countries)
JESUS
Praise God for allowing me to grow up in the U.S. where there are so many beautiful health, education, and safety systems in place to make the quality of life so so great. However, being here and living so simply makes me appreciate the little things so much. I have loved finding creative ways to be resourceful for myself and see how society can still function happily without so many strict regulations or so much stuff as the states. I am so thankful for this experience on the World Race, it is truly a journey of a lifetime.
