through the forest: November 2008

Holidays in my parents house have never really meant much. I used to think that it was because my dad was always gone, and maybe that is where it began... but now that he's home (at least more often)... not much has changed.

We've never been the family that sat down together, prayed together, or laughed together and shared cherished memories of holidays past. Instead, we were the three, sometimes four people, who happened to be in the same house together on a day when my mom happened to cook something nice. Even then, we never sat together at the table, or gave thanks together. We never prayed together, and more often than not we were trying to think of anything but the many empty holidays from the years before.

My whole life I wished for something more. I wished that my mom would teach us how to cook something simple, something fun that we could help with. I wished with my whole heart that my dad could be there (even though, I learned at a very young age that the military doesn't take into account how many holidays, birthdays, or special moments you miss with your children) I wished for magical moments filled with laughter, board games, and hugs... But it just never happened.

And even though I'll never get a chance to share those holidays with my family... I've had SO MUCH to be thankful for.

In the absence of family, I have had the very best of friends. Since I was 18 I have been spending Thanksgiving (and nearly every other holiday)with my friends, (boyfriends), and their families, and have made some of my favorite memories with them. They brought the laughter, and the love, the boardgames, the ridiculous amounts of food, and made the memories that I had always longed for, and I got to be a part of it all.

I am completely and totally indebted to all of the people who brought the magic of the holiday season into my life. Thank you for stuffing me with food, for inviting me into your homes, for insisting that I stay longer, for forcing me to learn new games, for pushing me into your family pictures, for making me laugh until I cried... and most of all- for being the family that I couldn't have at home. You've made a difference in my life that can't be expressed in words.

This year was my first married Thanksgiving, and Jordan and I had a wonderful time. In spite of the awkwardness that always surrounds my family and my parents house, and in part thanks to my sister's larger-than-life personality, there was no shortage of laughter this year. Emily took it upon herself to invite three of her friends from college over for dinner, and the catch... they're all from France! Haha! Thankfully there wasn't too much of a language barrier, because they all speak very good English, and laughter is the same, no matter where you're from. Emily introduced all of them: Maxime, Charlie, and Greg. Since we are all pretty close in age there was plenty to talk about for the few hours that they were there. It was the first time we'd ever had what you could consider a "family holiday celebration"... and it took Jordan and I being married, and Emily inviting three French guys.

But, by far the best part about Thanksgiving this year was spending "black friday" with Krystan and Keegan. We spent the afternoon at the St. Louis Zoo, running all over in an attempt to show Keegan (a Chicago native) as much as we could. We were able to find two penguins holding hands, a couple brave squirrels, little ducks with blue bills, a baby giraffe, wallabies, and five little tiger cubs! We also got a pretty cool preview of the Christmas Light Spectacular that the Zoo puts on every year. When the zoo closed we headed over to Delmar, and to our surprise and delight, it too was all decked out for Christmas. After snagging some delicious Q'doba we headed back to O'town to play the most intense and hilarious game that Wii has to offer!!! Rayman's Raving Rabbids!!!! Krystan has a video on her page of us dancing and a few pictures, that are a total crack up! We danced and played and laughed all night long, and it was definitely one of the most memorable Thanksgiving's ever.

I'm thankful for you.