Being British thanksgiving is something that has never been on our calendar, but in the multicultural expat community things often revert to the American way so thanksgiving is firmly on the calendar this year!! We naively decided to invite a whole group of people over, before realising we knew nothing about what you were meant to do or cook for thanksgiving, thinking google would help there was no panic until our trusty search engine revealed over 300 websites all claiming to have THE traditional thanksgiving menu none of which bore any resemblance to each other!
When we factored in all the different menu options not forgetting the Canadians amongst us who had missed thanksgiving earlier in the year and the Dutch nationals who were celebrating with us for the first time as well, we didn’t have what any one would call a traditional thanksgiving meal. That said seeing as some of the google suggestions included sweetcorn suspended in lime jelly and sweet potato mash with marshmallows we didn’t feel too bad!
Whilst as many things do it has largely become a commercial holiday in the west, but the church of Nepal has taken its origins and gather each year to celebrate and give thanks for the harvest, for the abundant blessings God has given them. Watching people who have no home to return to, earn less than a dollar a day and hungry mouths to feed bring what little they have to share with one another and give thanks for all they have been given is an incredible experience. Equally those that have materially but because of their faith have been completely rejected by all family, friends and banished from their villages, gather to joyfully give thanks to the God who is loving and good in spite of the cost, makes thanksgiving a very different affair.
We didn’t have a parade, or the super bowl and no turkeys were pardoned but in gatherings around Nepal there was an overflow of humble thanks from some immeasurably grateful hearts.
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