I used to think we started celebrating Christmas early, but they don't have Thanksgiving to ease them into the holidays. There were already advertisements before Halloween was even over. Thanksgiving is an American holiday, so I nearly forgot about it and let it pass me by this year.

But I did remember Thanksgiving, and this was the first Thanksgiving away from home. Everyone says they're thankful for friends and family, but I especially was this year - precisely because I was spending it away from them. I felt their absence. I'm so grateful for the people at home, and I'm grateful for the people I've met here. I've come to appreciate a lot of things from both places. It's been a huge privilege to be able to cross the ocean and come to another country to live for several months. I really do appreciate the opportunity and everyone who helped make it possible. I'm grateful for the people I've met and the experiences I've had. And I'm also grateful for home. I realise all the things I took for granted and how important they were for me (not the least of which was my mother's cooking!). It makes me grateful that they're not gone, that I'm going back to those things soon. I'm recognising all the things I have right now to appreciate and all the things I've had and will have that I should be mindful of. Once you start to count your blessings, you realise how countless they are