The concept of an American Thanksgiving remains foreign for me even as I begin to plan my fourth celebration. For many of my friends in boarding school and college, Thanksgiving is one of the few times of the year where they can go home and be with their family and friends. I, however, will not be able to do so, partially because we do not celebrate this holiday, but mainly because it is still not feasible to go home for a few short days. Needless to say, Thanksgiving is an awkward time of the year for international students like myself.

Back in my boarding school days (arguably the best days, but that is a story you can read about here), I had 10 days off in November for Thanksgiving break. Every Thanksgiving break was a different adventure – my mom would even fly in from Hong Kong to spend a week with me (and we went on college visits) – but they all ended with me spending Thanksgiving Day in my aunt’s apartment in New York City eating every non-school food I could get my hands on, and Thanksgiving dinner at a neighbor’s home.

Thanksgiving celebration for me began early this year. I was so focused on my classes and extracurricular activities that I forgot Thanksgiving was approaching. My Cru family (you can read about them here), however, did not. We had an early Thanksgiving dinner (we are basically a family at this point): We gathered for a time of fellowship, gave thanks and bonded over eating non-school food. We also named this holiday “Friendsgiving.”

Photo by Shaquan McDowell

This is my first Friendsgiving. For the first time in four years, I will be spending Thanksgiving away from my family. This was my own decision; I knew I could have taken a bus down to New York City or a train up to Vermont to see my best friend, but traveling over the week of Thanksgiving is immensely difficult. While I love Brandeis, staying in the dorms during a holiday like this one is hard. Knowing that all my friends will be home with their families (and eating good food) makes me a little sad.

I’m glad I learned about Friendsgiving this year. My friend Laura and I are currently trying to plan the best (and likely the most unhealthy) Thanksgiving dinner in our (her) room in Reitman. I am excited to be able to spend this holiday eating a ton of pie with her and some of my other friends – I think we are going to have a blast. But, of course, if you feel so inclined, feel free to bring us leftover food from home.