Thanksgiving, year 2

Well, it’s that time of year again in which holidays are celebrated. Given the scorching hot summer rolling in here in South Africa, the holidays don’t really feel like holidays. But we managed to pull off a pretty thankful Thanksgiving this year all the same. I celebrated very similarly to last year, with a group of PCV friends at a Catholic Mission where a nearby PCV couple stays. A delicious turkey was had (once again, breaking my vegetarianism briefly) and everyone in attendance contributed something yummy. We all went around the table and said what we were thankful for and this year, the things people brought up were much more, oh, intensely felt shall we say? Last year we were definitely full of thanks but for the simple things- good friends, a good site, the opportunity to be here, etc. Last year, we were just starting out. This year, we’ve all been through nearly a year and a half away from home facing numerous and varied challenges along the way, experiencing emotions we’ve perhaps never felt before. Most of us agreed that one thing we are immensely thankful for is support from friends and family. That includes our Peace Corps family (each other) and our real family and friends back home. Because I’m sure we all agree that we couldn’t have come this far if it weren’t for that support. So thank you to all friends and family who have been there for me and cheered me on these past 16 months. I doubt I’d still be here if it weren’t for you. The other big thing that’s really hit me during the past 6 months is my deep gratitude for the country that I come from and for the way I was raised. Before I left, I was pretty darn far from being a patriotic citizen. I was very cynical towards the United States in terms of culture, societal norms, and of course our foreign policy. This had started to improve already with the election and inauguration of Obama, but being here and living in this country that is still so tightly wound and tenuous after Apartheid has made me immensely proud of America and Americans. I’m thankful for the education I was given, for teachers that cared about my growth and learning and worked so hard to give me the highest quality education they could, without using corporal punishment to manage their classrooms. I’m thankful for parents who showed their love and affection for me, who were always there, who helped me expand my education through college and study abroad, and who took me to the zoo and the planetarium as a kid. I’m thankful that I was born into a family/culture/country that has afforded me not only the opportunities I’ve had but also the oh-so-comforting amenities that make life so much easier. This year on Thanksgiving, I was more honestly, truly thankful than I’ve ever been in my life.

Okay, so aside from that sappiness, the other big event on Thanksgiving Day was the slaughtering of a cow. There was to be a big 50th anniversary celebration for the Catholic Mission and that involved the slaughtering of two cows for the feast. This was done on the lawn outside and most of us went out to witness the slaughtering of the first cow. The men tied up the cow’s legs and tied its horns to a tree before sawing away at its throat. The cow didn’t make nearly as much noise as I expected it to and all I really saw was the blood spurting and gushing out of its head and neck while it’s body was twitching and convulsing. That was about all I could take so I left before the skinning and butchering happened. The little I did see definitely reinforced my vegetarianism (and yet I still managed to eat turkey the same day). I don’t think I’ll be eating much if any meat in the foreseeable future.

So, Thanksgiving is down, Christmas is next. It feels even less like Christmastime than it did last year. During July I felt like Christmas was just around the corner and half expected to see wreaths up in the stores on chilly days. Now, a month away and I’m shocked to see the Christmas decorations up in town and to hear the occasional holiday tune on the radio. Christmas and heat simply don’t go together.