We were finally able to host a big Thanksgiving Dinner on Thursday after a couple of years of COVID concerns. In my role as the director of the school, I like to invite non-Americans in our community to experience the quintessential American holiday. We are fortunate to have affordable domestic support and a large house to be able to accommodate a lot of people. This year I think we finished with 34 guests and people from Australia, Mexico, Israel, India, Ireland, England, and the USA. Nadia prepared my favorite stuffing/dressing and Bolivian corn salad. As you can see from the photos, we ate and drank is 100% satiation. Due to the large American population at the school, TIS gives the community a half-day off on Thursday, but we don’t get Black Friday off.
This year’s Thanksgiving dinner was different because the World Cup is taking place in November. Of course, we had South Korea – Uruguay game and it added to the festivities. The kids loved our dartboard and table tennis which kept them occupied between courses. Mercifully due to time differences, the Detroit Lions, my favorite professional American football team, game kicked-0ff after midnight. The National Football League traditionally schedules the Lions to play on Thanksgiving and they usually lose and it puts a damper on the festivities in my house. They actually played well on Thursday against one of the best teams in the league this year, the Buffalo Bills, losing on a last-second field goal. Despite being 4-7 this season, I am really entertained by the team. They were featured on HBO Hard Knocks during the preseason which brought the team publicity and they have one of the highest-scoring offenses in the NFL. They have some young, exciting players and with the Los Angeles Ram’s first-round draft pick this June, they will be able to get two more good players if they draft well. They need better players on defense.
I have much to be thankful for and the holiday reminds us to reflect on what is good in our lives. As I get older, I appreciate more relationships and how fleeting special occasions are in life. I am lucky to have a loving family and be able to interact with so many smart, interesting and good people in the expatriate school community and Uzbek friends.
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