(29) 90 in 90: Thanksgiving x2

Thanksgiving. A holiday that is as synonymous with America as Christmas and the Fourth of July. Its that time of year we think about the past and the future. We appreciate the people we have and the people we have been lucky to have known while eating copious amounts of food and drinking more than our fair share of wine.

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. It was always the time I looked forward to, seeing some family who I rarely ever saw, eating the delicious food that we only saved for once a year and playing games with my family long into the night. Its the one holiday that makes me nostalgic every time I think of it and the one holiday that makes me miss home the most when thinking about it.

Being in a foreign country that does not celebrate the holiday can be difficult times.At one end, you're enjoying your new life and freedom to escape from the confines and restrictions of your own country, its your adventure to the new and exciting and you're living it everyday.

On the other hand, it makes you long for the comfort and familiarity of home. The foods and the people and the places that no mater how hard you try, are impossible to recreate on the other side of the world. It's easy to get caught in this sort of mini depression, missing the things from back home that used to be such a big part of your life.

However, what people do is create their own celebrations, start new traditions. Share the company with people you've met on the other side of the world and enjoy this day together. You're all in this together, away from home and loved ones so its the perfect time to be together. Lonely people becoming un-lonely togehter.

I was lucky enough to participate in two Thanksgiving celebrations. One of them a large church gathering in Daegu and a smaller more intimate on with friends in my town of Gimcheon. Both gave me time to spend with the people I cared about the most in Korea and also gave me an opportunity to have a little taste of home with generous amounts of turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and mashed potatoes.

I always look forward to gatherings like these. I don't often have as much time as I would like with people due to my schedule and the randomness of other people's schedules. However, its nice to have holidays together, its a time to appreciate the unique situation were in, living across the world and lets us starve off our homesickness for a little bit.

This is post is really short, I wish I had more to say but, my mind is kind of blank today. I had a great Thanksgiving in Korea. I could not have asked for anything better.

Oh, if there was one thing I was thankful for this year, and every year since working overseas, its not having to wake up at the crack of dawn to go work a part time retail job selling cheap electronics to people who are more than willing to kill one another just to get that TV. One thing I do not miss is working Black Friday. It is my sincere wish to never work or never go out on that day ever again. Crazy is what it is. Just crazy

Thoughts of home and holiday

I love the holidays, the big holidays. The ones that you see on greeting cards and the ones that have songs played on the radio about them. They may have become more material (or rather more blatantly so) than before, but all the commercial glam and glitz I could care less about. I have in essence always enjoyed Thanksgiving and Christmas because of the two things it brought with it: the copious amount of free time and time spent with my family.

My family was never very large. All of my holidays have always been spent with my immediate family; my mother and father, my siblings and occasionally my grandparents.  When I was young this used to bother me. I would always hear stories about my friends going off to different state to visit their large families packed with uncles, aunts and cousins in some warm and sunny state while my holidays were spent in my own home in the cold and grey Indiana winter. As with all young children with a limited grasp of the world, I always wanted more, I always wanted what I couldn't have.

As I grew older and wiser, I realized that the idea of going to a faraway place to see relatives that I didn't really know or care about didn't appeal to me. It was no secret that my family was separated by distance and personal differences. Why make an effort to be with people who didn't feel the same. As I grew older, I began to appreciate the people who were with me all the time, the people that I actually enjoyed spending time with, I eventually grew to loving the small family and simple holidays that I had. They looked unspectacular to the outsider looking in, but for me their simplicity meant comfort. I could be myself, not have to put on a face to please other people, I could joke around with my siblings, drink more than I probably should and pass out on the couch later on in the evening. It was pure, comfortable bliss.

In a way, I already celebrated Thanksgiving in my own way a few months ago by celebrating Chuseok in Korea. I traveled with friends, had a great meal and overall had a great time. However, the strong sentimentally of the holidays and the end of the year approaching, I have to admit, that the slight feeling of homesickness is beginning to creep over me.

It comes in little unexpected ways. From little emails sent to remind me about Black Friday deals to tweets giving tips on who to stay healthy during the holidays, it’s the little clues that pop up the remind me that while my life in Korea, a new culture has been going along well, almost a new life, different from my old one, life and my family has been continuing without me, taking part in traditions and events that used to be a prevalent part of life still continue, minus one person.

I’m sure I’ll get over it and get back to my own life of working and living in Korea. It’s just funny how the littlest things can often remind us of home and the smallest hint of something can bring back happy memories from your past, making you long for the people and places of yesterday.

They say you can never go back, but as Korea has proven to me time and time again, this is not always the case.

To all back home and to all those around the world, Happy Holidays. Stay safe. Stay happy. Keep those you love in your minds and hearts.

The closest video I could find related to Thanksgiving. I must admit, I will miss the turkey and dressing. Also, Fresh Prince. 

Chapter 1: Departure

A year's worth of struggle, mis-direction and uncertainty was finally coming to an end. I stood in front of the bus stop as my family stood behind me. I was only minutes away from leaving behind the people that I have known longest in my life to travel to a country on the other side of the world. This was not the first time I had left behind my family, friends and hometown for an overseas trip, however this one would be different. This one was more than just a vacation or a simple job that lasted a few months.

This was a year long commitment in a country I was not the least bit familiar with. This was a journey into the complete unknown.

I had always talked about traveling. Dreams of getting away from my sleepy little town and seeing the world. What started as naive childhood dreams they soon turned into a reality for me. Once was enough to hook me. To convince me that my life's calling lay beyond the confines of my comfy little town. Traveling and exploring had found its way into my body with the only cure a few thousand miles away.

As the bus finally was ready to depart I gave my family the last physical farewell for a long while. I knew deep in my heart that I would see them again and though I did not act it, I knew I would miss them very much. They understood me. They understood my need to travel and see the world, even if they did not agree with it entirely.

“You're an adult now Kyle. I can no longer tell you what to do,” said my mother to me. “You have to live your own life. Chase your own dreams.”

As I boarded the bus I gave one last hearty wave goodbye with a smile on my face. I didn't want to them to be sad, I didn't want anyone to miss me. As selfish as those wishes were, I didn't want to hurt my family anymore. I wanted them not to feel sadness or loneliness but rather encouragement that I was embark on a new adventure, a new beginning.

The family (minus parents) 

It would only be one week later that I would understand how my family felt. One week later when the very concrete fact of being alone in another side of the world would sink in and paralyze me with fear and uncertainty. In my darkest and most fearful moments my thoughts would go to my family. They were the ones that mattered most, They were the ones I needed by me in times of crisis. They were the ones who I did not want to lose.

I sat down on the stiff seats as the bus rumbled along the highway. In less than a few hours I would be boarding a plane to Korea to start my new life. With a thousand bucks to my name and my entire life packed away into two suitcases.

As I started out the window I remembered the words my professor had told me in the past:

“One day you'll have to face the world on your own. It's is going to suck, but its what you have to do to grow and mature. You have to take control of your life. You have to become a man.”

His words echoed in my head, their abstract meaning finally making sense. So did the sadness and heavy heart of my parents.

I was twenty four years old, but still not an adult. I still had trials to face, challenges to overcome.

They were not losing a grown son eager for adventure, they were using their little boy about to embark on a journey that would most likely shape his life forever.

I was leaving a child.

I was coming back a man.