For our Thanksgiving celebration on Saturday, I felt like I was living through a holiday movie. Friends showed up with mitten hands wrapped around casseroles still warm from the oven. It took a while, but all of the traditional components were there: the pies, sweet potato casserole, candied sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, noodles, dressing, turkeys (found stuffed with chestnuts & currants, so almost more French than American), gravy, green been casserole (bestill my heart). We. Ate. All. Day.
And as the casseroles lined the counter and the wine glasses overflowed–or the Budweiser, known here simply as "Bud," went down quickly–we couldn't stop smiling. There were four of us, Americans, searching for that home holiday feel. Several of our British friends had been part of Thanksgivings before; for some Brits & French, it was a new holiday. There was something exciting, comforting & familiar that we couldn't quite put our finger on.
The meal lasted from 4:30 to 11 p.m, and you would be hard pressed to find a minute when one of us wasn't eating something. It was the first Thanksgiving where I really let myself go, filling the plate multiple times & enjoying a bit of every dessert (German gingerbread, French macarons, American pumpkin pie, cakes, tartes...). I wanted to consume every drop–every moment of feeling warm & complete on the holiday, every ounce of affection that went into each dish.
While standing on the balcony with a glass of wine, watching the snow fall on a section of the city, I realized why I couldn't stop smiling. We had found it. In the three months we've been here, we have discovered the feeling of home. We've found friends who open there hearts to us, without forgetting the feeling of longing for our true homes in the States. We've found a circle of comfort that allows us to move about the city, between friends' houses & now familiar neighborhoods, bars or side streets, while feeling truly at home.
With a little jolt inside my chest–from the cold & from the realization of my feeling–I saw for the first time that this can happen anywhere, this feeling of home & belonging & kinship. And that is what I am most thankful for this year: for the willingness of people to take on others, open their heart & share their experiences. I am thankful that in doing so, we remember how much we rely on others to carry our hearts, to be gentle with us & trust us enough to do the same.
We are truly blessed this year, & we're thankful for every minute of it. Thanks for being a part of the story & for sharing yourselves with us.
Now that we're a bit past the holiday, what was special for you this year? What are you most thankful for?
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