Thanksgiving

Today was a truly delightful day. I was able to do pretty much everything a weekend should entail: Sleep, eat, read, drink coffee, laugh, play, laugh s'more, eat s'more, and end the day with more sleep. That, in a nutshell, was my day. To expound, here's the long version.

After a restful and undisturbed slumber, I wake up to only find myself wanting to sleep some more. But instead of doing so, I drag myself out of bed and plop onto my computer chair and watch a few episodes of Arrested Development. If you haven't seen this show, I highly recommend it. If you enjoy comedies that feature smart and biting dialogue between some interesting characters, this show's for you. After enjoying some good laughs, I take a shower, brush my teeth, and forget to shave. Once my body was cleaned and adorned with clothing, I hop into my car and drive to the Starbucks on Upper James, where I spend the rest of the afternoon sipping coffee, munching on a slice of Pumpkin loaf, and reading one of the best books I've read in a long time, 'The Irresistable Revolution' by Shane Claibourne. As I was reading this book, I found myself fighting back tears, and I must say I have never read a book that has stirred up such emotion within me. To sum up the book (although to do such thing would not do such a great book justice) it's about caring for the poor, the broken, the hungry, the marginalized, and the outcasts. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

On the heels of reading stuff about people who are starving, I find myself heading off to the Goodyear's for a Thanksgiving dinner. Literally, as I was driving from Starbucks to their house, I was contemplating not going and fasting this meal on behalf of those who have nothing to eat. I was thinking to myself, 'After reading what you read, how can enjoy such a fabulous meal?' Although I did end up going, I found myself feeling very depressed and guilty during the whole entire car ride, and because I've noticed that I have been wearing my emotions on my sleeve lately, I didn't want this to get in the way of others having a good time. So for a good 2 minutes, I was loudly and audibly yelling at myself 'YOU'RE HAPPY!!!! YOU'RE HAPPY!!!!! STOP BEING A LITTLE BITCH!!!!! YOU'RE HAPPY!!!!!!' Hopefully it worked and I didn't ruin the evening for anyone. Before we started eating, Pernell prayed over the meal. I typically don't remember prayers, but something he said is still ringing in my brain: 'We thank you for the food and remember those who do not have any. We thank you for the fellowship and remember those who are lonely.' When I heard this, I was about to cry. That was my prayer. That was where my heart was. On this Thanksgiving weekend, I thank God for all the friends I've made, but think of all those who have been abandoned and are living by themselves. On this Thanksgiving weekend, I thank God for the over abundance of food, but think of all those who can only imagine what a full on Thanksgiving meal could taste like.

While we were literally feasting on a tremendous spread of fantastic food, I realized that although I've been here in Canada for 3 years, this is the first ever Canadian Thanksgiving I've ever been a part of. My first Thanksgiving was spent in Tyndale Res, choking down whatever crap the cafeteria decided to serve that day. My second thanksgiving was spent making my own dinner in Mississauga and wanting to kill the cat that shared my living space. But this Thanksgiving, I spent it with people who I have come to know and love. People who have become so close, I would go as far as calling them my Canadian family, all the while forgetting that I've only known them for just a few months. To Pernell, Margie, Sam, Luke, Jake, Dave, Jen, Natasha and Melissa, thanks so much for letting me spend the evening with you all. For my first ever Thanksgiving meal in Canada, I'm so blessed to have shared it with all of you.