Thanksgiving – a time for vast amounts of food and
family drama. As volunteers we find any way we can to
meet and celebrate holidays together because
collectively, we are each other's family here in
Ukraine. Thanksgiving was no exception. Eileen, who
lives in an even smaller village than me, came up with
the idea months ago to host Thanksgiving at her
perfect village house.
I was sick the week leading into Thanksgiving and was
worried I wouldn't be well in time for the big day. I
was stuck with some kind of flu that left me either
staring at a wall willing my head not to hurt or
running to the outhouse. Luckily, by the time
Thursday came around I was feeling just well enough to
receive Jonathan and Megan in my little village. They
arrived in time for dinner and we all sat down with
Enna and drank six pitchers of wine and talked the
night away (all in Russian!).
We were barely up the next morning at 6 am to catch
the bus into town. The trip to Eileen's village
wasn't exactly hard, but it was a little complicated.
We had to take one bus an hour northwest, then another
hour bus southwest, and a final bus just southeast to
her tiny village. Only one bus a day goes to her
village so if we missed it, we would have to
hitchhike. All was uneventful besides the explosion
on the first bus. We were all asleep when a loud bang
like a gunshot woke us up. Dust choked the bus and
everyone piled off for fresh air. The driver came
back to where we had been sitting, fiddled with a box,
and then started up again like nothing happened. I
was blowing black snot from my nose for the next two
days.
After the explosion on the first bus we made it to the
second city just in time to run to the final bus stop
and there we were met by 8 other volunteers. We
shoved ourselves onto an already packed bus and made
our way to the village, only to arrive at Eileens to
find that there was no water or electricity. Not a
huge deal. We went to the school and did a gender
equality lesson with the kids and then taught them a
little about American football. They actually seemed
to like it, even the girls.
Power and water were back by the time we returned home
and we were offered a rare treat while our pasta
cooked – the chance to see the turkeys we were going
to eat the following day killed! Eileen's landlord and
her son brought out two turkeys and cut their heads
off. They moved around for a good two minutes after
the slaughtering. After that Eileen and I were the
first to volunteer to pluck the turkeys and following
that I got a great video of the gutting. Only four of
us stayed for the gutting and such a special bonding
experience wouldn't be right if wine/vodka and food
weren't served. On the same table that our now
heartless turkeys laid, we enjoyed a small meal of
peppers, bread, salo and wine.
After a hearty meal of spaghetti and a few games of
pick-up-sticks and truth or dare, we went to bed
early. There were seven of us in one room and Shannon
read to us from The Princess Bride until we all fell
asleep.
The following morning Megan and I were up early to
make everyone coffee. We found a great coffee/tea
store in a town near me and I am so excited to buy
real coffee in the future! Soon everyone was up and
working. Some made breakfast, Megan and I made
appetizers, another group peeled potatoes, another did
dishes, and another tried to light a few pieces of
coal in the front yard….i'm not sure why.
About three in the afternoon the second wave of
volunteers came in bearing more food and wine.
Jeremiah and I arranged the dining room Moroccan style
because of a lack of chairs. The ambiance was
actually really nice. It even had candles. Dinner
began soon after and included two turkeys, mashed
potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, tabbouleh,
hummus, salad, pudding, and pumpkin and apple pie.
Eileen's landlords joined us along with her old host
dad, who was obnoxiously drunk and yelling things
about love between America and Ukraine. We went
around the room and said what we were thankful for
(yelling over the drunk man) and then sang the Star
Spangled Banner together.
The boys were given dish duty and they washed football
style. There was an assembly line from the stairs
into the main house to the kitchen. They called out
the play beforehand, even huddled and argued plays.
The neighbors must have thought we were insane.
After dinner we sang, we danced and we found an ax and
took a lot of crazy pictures. Through all of this if
felt like Thanksgiving – like a family gathering
together and catching up on information and stories.
Of course I missed my family and friends at home in
American, but honestly, there is no other place I
would rather have been for the holiday than in
Ukraine.
The next morning we were all up early. We left in
groups and hitchhiked into the next village where the
busses to Odessa pass. I spent the next two days in
Odessa saying goodbye to friends on their way home -
though the goodbyes are much easier than they used to
be. I suppose after all this time I've gotten used to
them. I know that I'll see them again before long.
Sometimes it is that thought alone that keeps me
going. I am thankful for friends. I am thankful for
family. I am thankful that I am here.
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