In celebration of Thanksgiving, I have decided to closely examine my life and the past four months in China and compile a list of things for which I am thankful.
Going off of the typical answers given by my students when asked the same question, I am thankful for my mother (and step-mother), my father (and step-father), my friends, and my grandparents. I, however, am not 12 and can speak English fluently (another thing…2 things…that I am thankful for!) so I will expand my list to include a few (or more) things:
- Tommy – my little brother, who is quickly becoming not so little anymore.
- The limited amount of Western food I can get in Zhuzhou (Oreos, Snickers, peanut butter, Coke, bread, KFC, McDonalds, and expensive, but delicious, Italian food at Namdo’s).
- The wider selection of Western food I can get in Changsha (spaghetti, spaghetti sauce, brownie mix, pancake mix, salsa, CHEESE, and BUTTER).
- The Western food that is sent from the USA (refried beans, Rice-a-Roni, tortillas, taco shells, etc. from my MOM).
- The Western food that I have to look forward to when I come home in 7 or 8 months.
- A working heater in my bedroom so that I don’t freeze to death.
- Warm clothes.
- Hot tea.
- Free “pure” water delivered to my apartment.
- Students that pay attention to me in class and actually seem to care.
- Skype.
- Facebook.
- YouTube.
- E-mail.
- Snail mail (ask me for my mailing address!).
- Cheap movies (5 kuai, or about 73 cents).
- Music.
- The other foreigners in my city with whom to celebrate the holidays.
- Skippy chocolate-swirl peanut butter.
- Spring Festival (I get about a month off, during which I plan to go back to Thailand!!)
- Cheap dinners (3 kuai for dumplings, 4-8 for noodles, 12-15 for rice)
- Foot massages (which is basically a full body massage).
- Foot massages that are payed for by someone else (even though they only cost about $10).
- The opportunities I have had/am having/will have to go abroad.
- China (even if it does drive me crazy).
- Rollerskating.
- Public transportation.
- Funny signs in English.
- Morning exercises and eye exercises (they make me laugh).
- My health (that China is slowly destroying, haha).
- Books.
- Being done with school (as a student, for now), and having earned my bachelor’s degree.
- All the people who support me back home financially and otherwise.
- Thailand (the country, the people, the food, and the experiences I had there).
- Western toilets.
- Bathtubs.
- Showers that are separate from the toilet/sink area.
- New friends, old friends, friends I have yet to meet.
- People who post episodes of my favorite TV shows online so that I can watch them over here in China (Grey’s Anatomy, Gossip Girl, ANTM).
- Three day weekends.
- Three (or four) day weekends that you find out about the afternoon before it begins.
- Street food.
- After school snacks.
- The jiao-zi place near my apartment (BEST dumplings ever).
- Blue skies (especially those in China).
- Rain (especially in China, as it clears the air a bit).
- STARS (I can count the number of stars I have seen in China on one hand…okay, that’s an exaggeration, but I could still probably count them).
- And finally...this video, and the reaction from my students when I show it to them.
1 comment:
It was so special to read your list of what you are thankful for, Kelly. I just read in the Family Circle magazine something along the same line, "Holiday Bliss":
If you don't receive your dream present this year, don't be too disappointed. Appreciating what you already have is more likely to make you happy than getting what you desire, reports new research from Texas Tech University. So once a week jot down three items you're thankful for in a gratitude journal. Kind of cool, huh? We are very thankful for you!
Love,
Nana and Grandpa
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