Expat Thanksgiving

Posted by Laura

North America is big on Thanksgiving - Canadians in October, Americans in November. Europe is not so much on the celebrating surviving harvest away from Europe... not sure what the deal is. Anyways, the expat community here is pretty big on Thanksgiving because it's kinda a hard reminder that we're all away from our families on one of the most family centered holidays in our passport countries. We almost over compensate - Thanksgiving is like a several week celebration as different groups gather and dorms provide feasts at some point between Canadian and American Thanksgivings. The Canadians put on a show for their special day, and the Americans host large meals somewhere from Thursday through Sunday of the last weekend of November.

It's all the more difficult for the singles here who are away from families and have to watch the family units gather together.

A couple girls in the community started their own Thanksgiving tradition five years ago by inviting several single staff to their home for a potluck dinner with a little Scripture and songs thrown in to remind us all why we left our families to begin with. I was able to join them this year again, and it was a great reminder for me why I love being in community with other people who love Jesus and love life.

I'll admit, the whole weekend was a little rough because we don't get any days off school since it's not a recognized holiday here, and I started an antibiotic on Friday that makes me feel a little queasy all the time. I almost considered bailing on the Saturday night Thanksgiving dinner because I was so sick, but I was also lonely. I spent the majority of the day binge watching Agents of SHIELD, and I'd turned down an invite to see Mockingjay in the original English so I'd have the social energy to interact politely with others. I shot a message to Sarah, Rachel, and Jordyne before I left for the dinner begging for prayer that I'd not feel too sick and, honestly, that I'd be able to work on building good relationships. Even though I've lived here a year, I still feel pretty disconnected from most of my coworkers - these other three women are my family, my crew, my besties, and I can share anything with them without filter.

Relationships of that depth take time - I won't jump into a double bed with three random strangers - only the three who have seen some of my life over a few years (and one of them might fall out in the night).

My Thanksgiving celebration turned out to be amazing, and I'm so grateful I made the effort and pushed through the nausea to go. I would have been remiss if I'd skipped out. I loved sitting around a table with other women in the same place in life as me sharing all kinds of anecdotes and laughing about random things.

Thanksgiving dinner naturally leads to days of leftovers, and tonight I was invited to a leftover dinner. It was a completely different and equally wonderful experience. One of my closest friends here in Germany is the mother of two high school students. Carol invited me over tonight, and I loved the chance to sit with her whole family and enjoy a casual meal together. After dinner, Carol's husband read a devotional for the start of Advent. It was a great family moment, one that happens most nights in their house, but I was so blessed to be a part of it. As a single person, I eat dinner alone most nights, and I'm usually thankful for that so I can eat my tomatoes and pasta without judgement from anyone else, but it's also nice to be a part of a family meal. There's something very special about sharing a meal with people you love.