Thanksgiving didn’t quite have the same feeling as usual now that we are living in Kenya.  For starters, we are thousands of miles from family.  Secondly, it was a beautiful, 80 degree, sunny day on Thanksgiving.  Now we aren’t complaining about Kenya’s glorious climate but the air just didn’t have the feeling that we are used to on Thanksgiving Day.  And probably the biggest difference was that we had to work on Thanksgiving.  Working on a holiday is no fun, but unlike everyone back in the States we did get Obama Day off back in November, so we dealt with having to work on Thanksgiving.  Since our school has students from over 40 countries we had a Cultural Celebration Day in honor of the Thanksgiving Holiday.  It was a fun day as students and teachers wore traditional dress, preformed songs and dances, and told stories from many different nations.  We also had a feast (highlight of the day) with foods from just about everywhere you can think of (Indian Curry, Ethiopian Injera/Wot, Kenyan Chapatis/Stew, Swedish Meatballs, Korean Barbeque, Belgian Chocolate Mousse, German style potatoes/sausage, and baked spaghetti all on the same plate!!!).  That night some missionary friends of ours from N.C., Jim and Angie Pope, invited us over for a traditional American thanksgiving dinner.  It was incredible and tasted very much like home.  It was also nice to have our sister Melissa in town for the holiday.

On Friday we were given the day off, so that made having to work on the actual holiday even more bearable (in conjunction with Obama Day of course).  So on Friday we got together with several of our friends that work here at Rosslyn and had our own Thanksgiving.  We had a huge spread of turkey, dressing, potatoes, green beans, and all the trimmings.  We ate until we were miserable and then sat around with our hands on our bellies talking about football (since we couldn’t watch it…..).  Then to finish the day off (and make it really feel like home) we played the First Annual Turkey Bowl Classic.  After all, nothing says Thanksgiving like a full belly, good friends that are quickly becoming family, and football.