We hope you’ve enjoyed your Thanksgiving Monday. Here in Thailand, where no one celebrates Thanksgiving except foreigners, we managed to find a way to celebrate!

We found roasted chickens in the market (no turkeys up here in Mae Sot!), then prepared mashed potatoes, carrots, and asparagus.  We avoided the frog, eel, turtle, and crickets that were also available for a few dollars. Joining us for this meal were some special guests. A new friend from Bangkok, who is teaching us how to set up the water systems in migrant schools, is here staying with us for a few days and our Burmese assistant joined us as well.

Our wonderful assistant made some delicious traditional Burmese tea leaf salad to go along with our meal.  Our first Thanksgiving in a new country was celebrated with new friends. The weather was hot and humid, rather than cool, and perhaps snowy, but the spirit behind the celebration was the same.  After supper, we read Acts 16 together and thanked God for the good times and the difficult times in our lives. We reminded ourselves to keep thanking Him in both.

In light of the reason for the season, we asked our children for what they were most thankful and least thankful…

Olivia is most thankful for her house that she lives in, here in Thailand. It is a place of security in the midst of many new surroundings (that would be my phraseology…not hers!). She is least thankful for the many bugs that crawl and fly and scare her. She definitely doesn’t like cockroaches (over an inch in length and half an inch in diameter) and she is rightly terrified of the bees…some as big as small humming birds.

Hannah is thankful for her new one-year old friend.  This little Burmese girl lives across the street with her family and Hannah plays with her everyday… holding her and even bathing her from time to time.  As you may already know, Hannah loves babies.  Hannah is least thankful for being far away from her many family and friends that she has left behind in Canada.  She misses all of you a lot!

 Ellie is most thankful for the house we live in and also thankful for homeschooling.  Homeschooling is more relaxed than being at GMS (not for her homeschooling teachers…that’s for sure!). She is least thankful for the heat that continuously washes over her, like the waves of the ocean.

Isaac is most thankful for our Burmese assistant who works with us everyday and also plays frisbee and soccer with Isaac when we’re at home.  Isaac is least thankful for the mosquitoes.  He has the most mosquito bites of our whole family.  They say that eating spicy food keeps them away.  That would explain why they don’t stay away from Isaac…

And in case you’re interested…

Irislee is most thankful that we’re living the adventure that we’ve dreamed about for many years, and for the bed frames that were made for our children yesterday out of old 2 x 4’s and new plywood (so they don’t have to sleep on the floor with the bugs).  She is least thankful for sweating, itchy skin.

Derek is also thankful for the beds for the children and also that he was able to share a message about Jesus, on Sunday, with 150 children (80% Buddhist) at their church/school. He is least thankful for the constant sticky, sweaty moisture that clings to him all day long, no matter what.

In everything give THANKS!

And so, Happy Thanksgiving, wherever and however you celebrate!

The Koch Kamotion