Thanksgiving in London

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Not just because it's a day dedicated to good food and pecan pie, but it's a time to spend with family. It's a time of celebration and love.
Before coming to London, I knew I would be missing out on Thanksgiving and Christmas with my family this year, but it turns out I didn't miss out on anything.
The fellow Americans on my team all love Thanksgiving so much that we didn't want it to be missed. We planned to throw our own Thanksgiving celebration, just like we have it back home- Turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, yams, the whole deal. It was exciting, especially for our non-americans who had never celebrated Thanksgiving before.
Last night was our night of thanks. As the Americans were hard at work in the kitchen making their favorite seasonal dishes, the Europeans and South Americans decorated the house. It was the most beautiful Thanksgiving I've ever had. As I looked around the room seeing everyone helping to make this night so special, it almost brought me to tears. This is what Thanksgiving truly is about. Being surrounded by people you love. And I can say that I love each and every person here. They are my family during this season of my life, and I'm so thankful to be sharing these memories with them. Once the cooking and decorating was complete, we gathered in the living room to watch "Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving". Then we circled around the table and each of us took turns to share something we were thankful for. Considering there were about 30 people at the dinner table, there was much to be thankful for. It was just such a good time. We prayed together and enjoyed the amazing food and afterwards played a game of family feud with our host, Tom from London, in a Penguin costume. Overall, it was a quality night spent with some quality people. I will surely never forget it.
Thank you, God.

Love always,
Makayla