Wednesday, November 28, 2018

On How Thanksgiving Strangely Feels More Real Overseas

My memories of Thanksgiving growing up, though distant, remain fond, bountiful and luscious. Throughout the 90s, down in Chile, my missionary parents did what they could to find a Turkey and some salsa de arĂ¡ndano, long before the age of Walmart-Internacional: where most everything can be found most anywhere in the world most of the time. There were rules to our ceremonial binge:
  1. At the Emmons table: Thou shall not commence digging in to the feast until Bob's leg and your cute face have coupled up for the classic Thanksgiving picture.
  2. And more importantly: Thou must singeth at the top of thy lungs the anthemic grace song of: BE PRESENT AT OUR TABLE LORD. I must admit, that as the vocal abilities of my siblings grew, there were times it seemed the dinner blessing would never end. Oh the 86-bar finale of a 4-part harmony Aaaaaaa-meeeeeeeen! 


Later in my 20s, back in the USA, thick in my social activisms, over-intellectual-faux stimulations and cultural anthropolotizations of all things, I mostly gagged at the idea of Thanksgiving. My red bubbling blood stirred a bitter existential inquiry that was absolutely aloof to the regenerative possibilities I'd discover a decade later, "What is there to celebrate?", I sulked. "A needle of a dinner in the haystack of the slaughter that would follow?" Shame, shame on all of you ignorant gluttons! 

Around my 30s, in Costa Rica, regenerative feathers started tickling me into an awareness of what Turkey Day could be, if only I could learn to let the bitter bean of my 20s percolate into a nice morning brew of cafecito con conciencia cultural. Originateve co-founder, Ron Green and his beautiful family, among the many things they have continued to bring to me and my family over the years, allowed me the first glimpses of what it would look like to take pride in my North American roots in spite of our bloody imperialistic history. They are what I call: Thanksgiving pros. As I watched them own the back corridor of studio 1, multi-tasking recipes passed down from both the Green and Curnow branches, I recalled a French Onion soup my mother had once made in beautiful ceramic pottery in the northern Atacama desert in Chile. Transformation happens with small shifts in our intention. Accountability was manifest even in those early days. I knew it would be shameful to not bring something of my people to that table. Time to grow up. And so glad I did. To this day those present still request my mother-inspired soup.  

As the planning for the big Pavo day in Costa Rica drew near, I remember the list we started to make of those we would invite. The question was a straight shooting one: Who has made your life, far away from your home, feel like home? This powerful consideration rooted in the historicity of the holiday was a game changer. Ever since, I have looked forward to the season of Thanksgiving as a time to let those who have welcomed my family and I into their country, families and homes, how very grateful we are. 


This year was no different. Shishi, China has been incredible to us. The vibrant community growing out of the Master Tree Kindergarten project is most definitely one we feel very blessed to have struck paths with. Towards the end of the Summer of 2016, my family had to make the very difficult decision of leaving the northern province of Shandong due to high levels of pollution. Like the English settlers, just under 400 years ago, we were in love with the new land we had come to from so far away. However, the smoggy winters were taking a toll on our children and we needed an extra hand to make our dream of growing our family and dreams in China possible. That is where we set sail, South, to find a Plymouth rock of our own.







This past Thanksgiving night, my wife had her Tarot cards read by Originateve University mentee: Javier Rhenus Lastres. For the present, she was shown the 10 of cups: 


"The Ten of this suit traditionally signifies family and community, often showing a celebratory scene including many generations, crowned by a rainbow signifying the end of hard times.

See this vision -- love and support extending in all directions -- a huge emotional safety net for everyone." (tarot.com) 
This powerful reading reflects the profound gratitude I have this season towards our Master Tree community that has gracefully welcomed our family to play out Originateve's vision for a regenerative approach to education. 
This energy seemed to radiate throughout our team, as well, as we gathered for a potluck-style Thanksgiving dinner. Though, as it always goes, everyone was a bit estranged to what we were celebrating and why, as the night moved on, each toast shed light on the reason for the season: THANK YOU MASTER TREE for making Shishi, China feel like home!
Take a good luck and drool your faces off with the odd but delicious Thanksgiving dishes we feasted upon while a strange sense of what that first Thanksgiving must have felt like partaking of strange but delicious foods in a foreign land that would becomes a home away from home to those of us proud to be Amerikanos.   





HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM OVERSEAS!