Thanksgiving Reflections

This year I spent Thanksgiving in Ecuador with the Aviles family (pictured left). We had such a great time. It was kind of last minute. I was invited to the house of a missionary couple here, but at the last minute (about one week before) they found out the had to leave town. I talked with the family I am staying with and asked them if they would like to have a traditional Thanksgiving meal with me. They agreed.

I was going to make the stuffing and mashed potatoes and a cake. And Pachi (the mom) was going to buy some turkey. You see they don't eat a lot of turkey here, so she had never made turkey but knew a man who made turkey and she could buy some from him. On Thanksgiving day, I had class in the morning (because it is not a holiday here), I returned from class around 11:30 am. We had to eat around 2 pm because work began again around 3 pm. When I got home, I asked Pachi how she was doing, she said she was doing very badly. She said she went to buy the turkey and he didn't have any. So she want to Supermaxi (the grocery store) and bought a turkey breast but it was frozen solid. We had about 3 hours cook this frozen turkey breast.

I started making the stuffing and potatoes, she put the turkey in the microwave to try to defrost it. Eventually we decided to cut it into pieces to speed up this process a little. So we did and believe it or not, the turkey was ready to eat at 2:20 pm. So we had turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, and cake. Everyone enjoyed the meal. The stuffing and cranberry sauce were thngs they had never eaten before. They especially loved the cranberry sauce.

I am so grateful for this family I am staying with. This meal was strange for them, but they willingly ate it with me because they knew how much it meant to me. They have gone out of their way to make me feel at home. I feel like I belong in the family.

I am also very grateful for my family at home in the states. They have supported me in my decisions (as crazy as they may have seemed to them) over the last several years. I know they love me very much and I know they are praying for me while I am away.

I am also grateful for my friends in the states. I know that I will not make it in Ecuador without the prayers and love from my friends. And I know that my friends are praying for me all the time.

Most importantly, I am grateful for my God! He has carried me and continues to carry me through struggles. I feel his presence and his love with me at all times. I know things will not always be easy here in Ecuador, but I also know that he will never leave me or forsake me because he said so.