Moment:
Every single one!!
I’ve never had the type of Thanksgiving that you see in the movies: the 47 family members gathered around a Hogwarts-length table with a spread of mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, and of course, the turkey. It’s a slightly foreign concept, considering Thanksgiving is an American holiday, so my parents and other family members never grew up celebrating it. Being a first-gen American with immigrant parents means that most of our family is halfway around the world or scattered across the United States, too far apart to come together for such a short time.
But over the years, I’ve learned that your family isn’t just made up of the people who you share a bloodline with, but it includes all of the people you choose to surround yourself with, who shape you into the person you have become and are continuing to grow into. The last few years, our Thanksgivings have been spent with family friends and international college students who have also left their families behind in their home countries and therefore have nowhere to go for the holidays, and it is always an amazing time of celebrating the little things, and looking back at all of the ways in which God has blessed us.
This Thanksgiving, I’m focusing on the little things that make life a bit sweeter and the journey more fun. When I came to India, I decided to write down one or two things that I’m thankful for. Some are funny, some are cheesy, and some are deep, but all of them are sincere. I am eternally grateful for God, my family, my friends, the blessing of music, the privilege of education, and the gift of life (my brother would add Chick-fil-A to that list lol). I’d love to hear which ones you relate to, and what you’re thankful for! Welcome to the Thanksgiving table :)
P.S. I've linked the related blog posts for each day, and I’m going to be updating this list until the end of the year, so be sure to subscribe at the bottom of the page for updates!
July:
1 - Gratitude! I’m really hoping I’ll stick with this because I think it’ll help me gain perspective and realize I have a lot to be thankful for
2 - Desserts shaped like fruits (who are we trying to kid here?) and my brother who is my ultimate hypeman
3 - My friends who made a hashtag #prayforshiny because they worried that I wouldn’t make any friends in India
4 - Patriotic red, white, and blue M&Ms and kids vs adults Taboo
5 - Singing “Ten Thousand Reasons” with my WHOLE family
6 - Being able to shop in the kids section, and the interesting and sometimes confusing genre that is Indian rap music
7 - The lights at the capitol building and meeting Dad’s mentor
12 - Being 1 kg short of our luggage weight limit, and “Welcome to Hyderabad” signs!
17 - Game nights, welcome dinners, and Uber (even though I got cancelled on 4 times!)
19 - Finally learning how to throw a frisbee
20 - Cafes with live bands and whole drum kits attached to the ceiling
21 - Staff at music stores who give you the best recommendations for live music venues
22 - Friends who sing original songs for you
24 - My business anthro prof’s favorite saying: “that’s worse than mixing samosa and rasgulla”
25 - My first bible study at HCU
28 - Origami boxes and paper airplane races
29 - Drum processionals through the street
30 - The grayish-yellow sky after it rains
31 - Candid talks about faith
August:
2 - Spicy food that makes your eyes water and your nose run
3 - Connect Four tournaments
4 - Guitars (and shopping for them)
5 - Dogs who walk to class with you
7 - Games that require going barefoot, and cute goodbye notes
8 - Playing worship songs on the roof and being joined by people on another roof
9 - Shopping for wedding outfits
10 - Dinner with the fam and a 10 minute lecture on the importance of eating bananas
11 - Mini Jenga & Sour Patch Kids (thanks Mom!)
14 - First time metro rides (and an almost completely empty train!)
20 - Family reunions and 70th birthdays
22 - My dad’s green thumb and the amazing curries that come from the fruits of his labor (to my fam: stop sending pictures and start sending Tupperware boxes!)
23 - Badminton on the balcony and phone calls with the Brownie Bites Club
25 - Thums Up and Heads-Up
26 - Discovering my grandparents’ medical school records and files
28 - Basil chai and Game-of-Thrones-inspired hairstyles
29 - Kittens being amused by backpack straps
30 - Establishing rule #1: there are no rules
31 - Jams with the band and people who truly love their jobs (like the dancing mascot outside an electronics store)
September
1 - Witnessing the nail-biting phenomenon that is fantasy football
2 - Telling people that our friend Gavin is a celebrity so they’ll swarm him for selfies
3 - Officially blogging for AIFS
4 - FaceTime calls with best friends
6 - My brother’s list of things he loves: God, Family, Friends...and Chick-Fil-A
8 - Personalized Spotify playlists and secluded campus hikes
9 - Study sessions on the terrace and color-codes schedules
10 - Good company that makes mediocre food seem amazing
11 - Plant moms (this particular one has 92 plants and counting)
12 - Train hopping and my fuzzy throw blanket
16 - Parents who have fun with their kids: a kid on the metro kept saying “Mummy,” and his parents keep pretending to mishear him, saying “Bunny? Tummy? Funny? Yummy?”
17 - Google Hangouts catch-ups with middle school friends (car chases were involved)
18 - Snail mail and pen pals
19 - Being dubbed the “caption queen”
20 - When friends FaceTime you from CStat so you can go to a rave with them
21 - Jam sessions at sunset at White Rocks
23 - Isaiah 9 and sharing life stories
24 - Snakes & Ladders, and our Hindi teacher’s dosas with coconut chutney
25 - Choir Moms who posted all of our old shows on YouTube so I can reminisce
26 - Salads with actual lettuce in them, and bookstores with my childhood comic books
27 - The biggest 2-percenter in the world got the Aggie bling!
28 - All-worship night and Paradise Biryani
29 - Leading worship at Brazen Grace with some incredible musicians
30 - My first Hindi speech, which was about how I became a “Sangeet-kaar” (musician)
October
1 - Friends who travel 2 hours to get you fresh coconut water when you’re sick
2 - Baby showers and the cutest parents-to-be you ever did see
3 - Becoming an official blogger for the Aggies Abroad blog
4 - Food with seasoning and literally any color whatsoever. I’m sick so I’ve been eating yogurt and mashed potatoes for three days :(
5 - Absolutely normal blood work = no dengue fever or malaria!
6 - Foot-long beanies that cover my entire forearm and intricately-carved wooden book stands from Kerala
7 - “National Transfer Money to Your Daughter’s Account” day (thanks mom and dad!)
8 - The people who came up with Dandiya, so I can have fun dancing without looking like a fool because I can’t come up with any moves
9 - “Red Lorry, Yellow Lorry” and other Indian twists on typical American tongue twisters
10 - Campus flash mobs
11 - Laughing so hard that your stomach hurts (careful though, it might get you all kicked out of the restaurant!)
12 - Acoustic renditions of 90’s Christian rock songs (Petra Praise, anyone?)
14 - Quality time with my aunt and my grandpa’s brother’s amazing cooking
15 - My mom’s Indianness: the only thing she asked me to bring back from India is chili
powder lol
16 - Kurkure samplers (they’re like Cheetos but five million times better)
21 - Fireworks from the metro above the city
22 - "Our God is an Awesome God"
23 - Being sown in the “good soil”
24 - Catching an overnight bus with one minute to spare
26 - The opportunity to pursue my dreams of becoming a doctor
27 - Hot showers after outdoor bucket baths for three days, and friends who have your laundry folded and waiting for you
28 - People’s hilarious ringtones: “hello honey bunny, hello dumpling dumpling.”
29 - Shout-outs in Mom’s journaling bible: “Shiny’s favorite verse” next to Genesis 46:4
30 - Broski’s birthday pie in honor of his username: “pieisgood070”
31 - Writing a new birthday song (that involves a TON of screaming) for my brother that is going to take the world by storm
November
1 - My alter-ego/new stage name: SuNIGHTa
2 - Encore Christmas performances when the sound system doesn’t work the first time around
3 - The “Now-ember” mindset
5 - Wedding receptions with the squad and the cutest 2-year-old in a 3-piece suit
6 - Rooftop jam seshes
7 - Academic lectures about blogging and digital space from a published author (a.k.a my program director, Sumana!)
8 - Spontaneous musical collabs on stage in a language that your guitarist doesn’t know
9 - Mall Maggi and rock bands with a sitar player (Threeory)
10 - “Great is Thy Faithfulness”
11 - Awkward but wholesome phone calls with friends’ moms (we had one with my mom too)
12 - Last day of classes and TAMU insta features
13 - Kids who know the medical term for a heart attack (PS it’s myocardial infarction) but also ask what language we speak in Texas
14 - Surviving a ride on a motorcycle that broke down 6 times in an hour
15 - “The heavens are roaring the praise of Your glory, for You are raised to life again”
16 - Dogs that love music so much that they lick your face while you’re singing
17 - Unlimited sushi buffets (best Thanksgiving Brunch ever!) and talking to people about their dream future
18 - My first conversation in Hindi...that the other person could actually understand :P
19 - Random nicknames that I pretend to hate but secretly love because they’re like a little inside joke (ex. Chucky)
20 - When opposites can coexist and even cooperate (also being done with finals!)
21 - Gorgeous views and giant families
22 - Cheesy tourist destinations and drinks that match your outfit
23 - Taking the wrong ferry but it’s okay because you’re with the right people
24 - “This Little Light of Mine” Matthew 5:13
25 - Singing with a wedding band and family-style meals
26 - Harmonies that sync so well that they give you chills, and the simplicity of a bread omelet
27 - The miracle of life and becoming an Atha
28 - 30 page papers (I don’t love writing them but I do love finishing them!)
29 - Being bilingual, so that English can be my thinking language and Telugu can be my feeling language
30 - Family reunions and obligatory recreations of childhood photos
December:
1 - The sense of humor and trip-planning skills I got from my mom
2 - Paaka Organic Cafe with professors and the best house-made paneer EVER
3 - Classic Telugu songs and beautiful but creepy gardens
4 - See-you-soons, not goodbyes <3
5 - Walks down memory lane
6 - Farewell dinners and on-location video shoots...that’s a wrap :)
7 - SheThePeople (a women-run news organization) and making your voice heard through writing
8 - Actually fitting everything in my luggage and flying home!!
9 - Being back in my own room in my own bed
10 - Best friend sleepover and tacos
