Thanksgiving

The older I get, the more I love Thanksgiving. (Perhaps food is becoming more and more the center of my life?) Or maybe (I'd like to think) I love the meaning of Thanksgiving, that it is a day to spend time cooking a feast, then savouring it with loved ones. And, of course, a day to be thankful. I have been touched by reading everyone's Facebook status messages today as they say, “I am SO thankful for __.” (Yes, sadly these days I use Facebook as a way to keep my finger on the pulse of America...but I AM thankful for Facebook—there, I said it!)

I think that as Americans we really need to try to be thankful more often, especially given how much we have. Unfortunately, most Americans seem to be more focused on what they want rather than what they already possess. Of course, I know this is probably a basic human tendency rather than something distinctly American, but I do think that Americans have gotten more and more entitled for some reason. It's as if we all walk around thinking that we deserve better, something is owed to us, we are special, etc. Anyway, there are SO many things that we should be thankful for in the US. It is easy to lose sight of this, especially when you're in the thick of it, so I'm going to make a little list here of what I appreciate about the US (from an abroad perspective) on this very uniquely American holiday.

Here goes: (however, this is by no means a complete list)

-I am thankful that English is my native language, since it has become the universal language of communication. (To illustrate this, in our Japanese language classes, we are probably the some of the only native English speakers—so far we have met classmates from France, Taiwan, Iran, China, Ukraine—but the teacher instructs in English.)

-I am thankful that I live in a country where women are generally treated as equals. (Even in Japan where women are increasingly equal and have jobs, men are still expected to go out socializing/drinking with their office and come home very late at night while the wife takes care of the family, and the man gets first dibs on bath water, food, etc.)

-I am thankful that I have so many opportunities!! *this one needs subcategories
--for traveling abroad: With an American passport, you can enter any country in the world (except ones which are not safe/politically oppose us, etc). This doesn't mean everyone loves Americans-- we've done a lot to tick many people/cultures off--but at least we have enough money (and therefore status) to get into other countries. We were talking with a Japanese guy whose former girlfriend was Chinese, and he said that they wanted to go to Europe, but she had to get special permission from the embassy and wasn't granted it. So, no trip.
--for being able to live/work abroad: native English speakers are in pretty high demand. And since we are highly educated, we can easily be immigrants unlike most of the world's population in developing countries for whom nearly every border is closed. (There is a girl from Iran in our language class and she would love to go to the US for graduate school, but it is extremely difficult for her to get through between language testing, the GRE, citizenship stuff, etc. I jokingly told her she should marry an American guy and she agreed that, “Yeah, maybe I should think about it!”)
--for higher education: The US tertiary system is about the best in the world and we have so many universities from which to choose! We were discussing yesterday how many foreign students are dying to do under/grad/post grad work in the US and how proportionately few spots are available.
--for traveling domestically: The US is huge and that means we have a huge diversity in liveable locations. It is fairly easy to move from state to state, which gives us lots of opportunities for work, school, etc. Also, the national parks are AMAZING. We should all go much more often.

-I am thankful for spacious housing, central heating/air, big ovens,comfy beds, comfy chairs. These things can definitely be taken for granted, but even in a developed country like Japan, I don't have any of them! A big kitchen is probably the thing I miss most in our current living situation...

-I am thankful to be able to read and write (in English, anyway). Probably I have also taken this for granted until now. One becomes quite helpless in many situations when you cannot read/write. (Believe me!) Shockingly, there are close to 1 billion illiterate people in the world today. (And I don't think my current situation counts in that number.) That's nearly 15 percent of the global population!! Can you imagine? (From living in the Gambia, I really can. If this disturbs you—and I hope it does—consider organizing a book drive with or donating to the African Library Project: www.africanlibraryproject.org, a non-profit for whom I have been a board member the past four years.)

-I am thankful for the internet. When faced with no internet connection as we have been a bit lately (and will be next week when we move to a new apartment) I feel as if I am losing my lifeline. How much easier it is to be here, so far away from family and friends and well, English, when we can plug into the internet and chat and read away! Today, for Thanksgiving we skyped with Jim's family and then with mine, so I was able to see everyone we would have had Thanksgiving dinner with AND Sam, the best dog in the world. Oh, and my parents, too. ;)
I also have found free ebooks online (they're all classics, but that's good incentive anyway) and most websites are still available to us from Japan.
When in the US, there is Hulu for free movies, online TV shows, Amazon pay and view, Pandora free radio...Ahh. Enjoy them folks, these things are not available outside the US!! (I tried to pay for an episode of West Wing from Amazon the other day and the screen popped up: “We detect you are not in the US. Due to licensing issues, we are not able to sell outside the US.” Argh!)

-I am SO thankful for my tremendous family and friends, all over the globe. To have my family and my family-in-law be so wonderful AND supportive of our time overseas means more than I can possibly say. If we counted richness in people, Jim and I are wealthy beyond belief. I miss everyone! I am also thankful for our new friends here in Kyoto who have been so helpful and encouraging. It has made all the difference.

-I am thankful for Thanksgiving! And not just for the turkey, stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole and pumpkin pie---oh my!! (Though boy, I am thankful for—and missing—all that!) I am thankful for the emphasis on family, being together, and counting our blessings.

-I am lastly thankful to everyone who read this blog. Perhaps it's the teacher in me, but it's nice to know I might actually be reaching someone! :)