No matter how you are culturally prepared to live in the U.S. as an international student, there will always be things that surprise you. One of them was Thanksgiving this year. The real Thanksgiving. I mean, I already celebrated Thanksgiving last year in the boarding school, but you know, a dry turkey and tasteless pumpkin pie in the dining hall with a couple of other international students who couldn't go home for the break....not the best experience in my life. So when I was looking at all American students craving to come home for Thanksgiving I couldn't really relate to them.
However, I didn`t have to stay on campus this year watching Thanksgiving episodes of Friends all night because my friend from Traverse city in Northern Michigan kindly invited me and our Turkish friend to celebrate Thanksgiving with her family.
And what can I say? I loved this holiday. Not even liked, but truly fell in love with it, deeply regretting that we do not have it in Russia. Just seeing all the family coming together and say thanks for all the little happy moments, enjoying delicious food and talking about everything from everyday life to historical roots of the Thanksgiving traditions made me realize how much sometimes we need to take a break and think about joy we have in life despite our difficulties. Yes, we are stressed in school, the finals are coming, but it is all manageable until we have things and people we can be grateful about.
It was just amazing to feel like home despite being 6000 miles from mine: watching Friends and eating left-overs, staying in pajamas until 3 pm, baking ginger cookies, playing board games and riding a car listening to our favorite songs. Just doing things you do not really do on campus. It made me actually realize that no matter how much independence runs through my veins, I still miss my home, my friends, my other life.
So it was a little bit strange feeling to come back Umich and dive into school work again. But one more push and I`m going to see my family and see my favorite little monster - my sister.
Hope, everyone had great Thanksgiving too.
P.S I have never seen such a GIANT turkey in my life!
However, I didn`t have to stay on campus this year watching Thanksgiving episodes of Friends all night because my friend from Traverse city in Northern Michigan kindly invited me and our Turkish friend to celebrate Thanksgiving with her family.
And what can I say? I loved this holiday. Not even liked, but truly fell in love with it, deeply regretting that we do not have it in Russia. Just seeing all the family coming together and say thanks for all the little happy moments, enjoying delicious food and talking about everything from everyday life to historical roots of the Thanksgiving traditions made me realize how much sometimes we need to take a break and think about joy we have in life despite our difficulties. Yes, we are stressed in school, the finals are coming, but it is all manageable until we have things and people we can be grateful about.
It was just amazing to feel like home despite being 6000 miles from mine: watching Friends and eating left-overs, staying in pajamas until 3 pm, baking ginger cookies, playing board games and riding a car listening to our favorite songs. Just doing things you do not really do on campus. It made me actually realize that no matter how much independence runs through my veins, I still miss my home, my friends, my other life.
So it was a little bit strange feeling to come back Umich and dive into school work again. But one more push and I`m going to see my family and see my favorite little monster - my sister.
Hope, everyone had great Thanksgiving too.
P.S I have never seen such a GIANT turkey in my life!
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