Happy Thanksgiving

This year, I decided to stay at college for the Thanksgiving holiday. Though I really miss my family and wish I could have magically transported myself to be with them for dinner, I am so happy I decided to stay at school- having some alone time around the holidays was much needed this year.

One of the highlights of my Thanksgiving was having dinner with Trish- my Taekwondo coach- and her family. She has been such a dear friend to me ever since I started Taekwondo three years ago. When I spent the summer at college a few years back, Trish was the one who drove me to my first tournament. She also comes up to teach at the college even though she works all day, teaches other classes, and has two adorable kids that she needs to get home to. I am amazed and inspired by her ability to be an amazing mom, give back to other people, and have a great career all at once. In a lot of ways, she reminds me of my mom, and I hope to be as good a parent as they both are one day.

So, I go over to spend Thanksgiving with her, and her whole family is fabulous. I haven't been around so many warm, beautiful, welcoming people in a really long time, so this Thanksgiving was a treat. Dinner was fantastic, and I think I've got myself a new stuffing recipe, courtesy of Trish's mom. At one point, I start talking to another gentleman at the table and he's asking me about college. Then all of a sudden, he starts listing a bunch of my friends' names and asking me if I know them. I got a little nervous at first and wondered what I had done to send the CIA after me, but he later told me that he is a professor at Hamilton- one that I've heard many great things about, too. "It's a small world after all..."

Although the food was great and the company was lovely, one of the highlights of my evening was watching Trish's son and the son of another guest who was from Japan play together all night. The other boy did not speak a lick of English, and yet, they got along so well and seemed to understand each other just fine. I can practically hear some couples I know saying,
"It's no wonder they got along well. I'd probably get along a lot better with my husband/wife too if he/she stopped talking so much."

...But seriously, it was amazing. In a moment of reflection I thought, "How great a world would this be if we could all just meet each other- see each other face to face- understand that while there may be language differences, religious differences, cultural differences- we are far more similar than we are different." Sometimes, it's easier to focus on the former. But, the focus on difference also creates divisiveness, which to me, is the root of a lot of suffering in the world.

As I watched these two boys play, I realized that sometimes in life, what we don't say holds more weight than what we do say. Regardless of what language we "speak," there is something about human communication that trumps oral language. At the heart of our relationships with people, there is: the desire to be accepted, to have fun, to gain new perspective. I admired the boys for doing something that many adults seem to have trouble with these days- focusing on the sameness rather than the difference...a lesson we should all learn if we want to leave the world better than it was when we entered into it.


Of course, Thanksgiving wouldn't be complete without giving thanks. I love this holiday because (other than the delicious food) it reminds me to reflect on all of the wonderful opportunities I've had in my life, and all of the wonderful people I have had the honor of knowing who made the journey worthwhile thus far. I am so thankful for this dinner, for the opportunity to try anything and everything I've ever wanted to do- like study abroad in Fiji, or join Taekwondo, or write for a magazine. I am thankful for my education and the past four years at Hamilton College- the extent to which my college experience has changed my life is positively overwhelming. I am thankful for my health, my dreams, and my faith in others and in myself. And, I am eternally grateful to my own mom, who brought me into this world, nurtured me for the last 21 years of my life, and practically hand-stitched a beautiful set of wings for me so that I could fly. The view from up here is truly breathtaking.


Love Life &
Happy Thanksgiving,


<3 Melissa