November 27, 2008 - the fourth Thursday of November - 3 more days left in November - less than a month left until Christmas - Oh! And it's Thanksgiving!
My, my has time flown by. I can't believe it's Thanksgiving. Yes, the time has traveled quickly, but I more or less can't believe it's Thanksgiving because I'm typing this from my desk at work.
Last night, I spent my evening peeling, coring, and slicing apples for my first attempt at a purely made-from-scratch and made from my own recipe apple crisp. I spent just over 2 1/2 hours on this dish. It has been quite an adventure for me since signing up to bring dessert to the Intern Thanksgiving celebration. Assuming I'd be able to find a can of pumpkin puree' at the local market, I volunteered to make a homemade pumpkin pie for the celebration. After searching markets in Cardiff, Swansea and even London, I was left pumpkinless.
I spoke with my mom last night, boasting my success on an absolutely incredible apple crisp. I could hear the disappointment in her voice as she uttered, 'I miss you,' and hung up the phone.
Thanksgiving is, as it is in most familes, one of the largest and most important holidays. Everyone is typically around on Thanksgiving. For the most part, cousins that are married are with our family for Thanksgiving and are with their spouse's family for Christmas. This is the holiday that we all get together, eat in the early afternoon and spend the rest of the evening in a food coma, watching movies, playing games and drawing names for the Christmas secret Santa exchange. It's the holiday where my cousin takes out the good dinnerware and we eat in the dining room instead of at the kitchen table. It's the holiday where we go to bed early that night so we can get up early to help the retail world move into the black on Black Friday.
Although I'd rather be spending this holiday with my family and friends in good old Ohio, this isn't the last place I'd want to be. The shared feeling of homesickness is present in all of us, at least for today. I'm rather excited to eat turkey...even if it wasn't prepared by a relative.
So what am I thankful for? I'm thankful for the opportunities I've been given here; the things I've seen; the places I've visited; the friendships I've made; the friendships I've maintained; the family that I have and love; and this meal I'm just a few short hours away from eating.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. I hope your day is truly blessed!
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