This year we are very blessed. When we sit down at our Thanksgiving table next Thursday we will be surrounded by family – my mom, grandmother, sister, along with Erajh’s entire family. This has never happened before. Normally, my mom and grandmother stay in South Carolina and if my sister does visit someone for the holiday, she goes to spend it with my mom. Erajh’s family did spend the holiday with us last year, but that was the first time that they had ever come for Thanksgiving. For so many years, Thanksgiving was just Erajh and I cooking game hens for dinner while we studied for our upcoming finals. And yet as thankful as I am to have this wonderful gathering, I can’t help but think about the people that won’t be able to make it to our table – friends who have decided to travel this year, friends who will be spending the day with their own families, and family that live far away, like Erajh’s cousin Malisha that now lives in Sri Lanka.
I first met Malisha in 2007 and instantly liked her. After living in Sri Lanka all of her life, she had applied to a university in Georgia and gotten in, leaving her to rely on family in the area to get acclimated to a new school, new country, and new culture. What probably felt like a million miles from home, Malisha handled it all beautifully, excelling in school (I’m pretty sure she graduated with a 4.0 gpa) and making tons of new friends along the way. When when we would visit her in Georgia, I often wondered how she did it – her parents and comfort zone were a world away.
And she was great when Greenleigh was born – always offering to help and wanting to spend time with her, which often helped Erajh and I so we could go out and run errands. Malisha always sang Greenleigh’s praises and was constantly buying things for her. She loved Greenleigh and it was so apparent. She even requested that Greenleigh attend her graduation party as a special guest. Greenleigh was a little over a year old at the time, but I’m pretty sure she had a great time.
After Malisha graduated, she tried to find a job here in the US, but with a visa that was approaching expiration she eventually had to go back to Sri Lanka. She promised to return to the States for a masters degree, but the rules required that she spend a couple years in Sri Lanka before coming back. I was pregnant with Hazeline at the time, and it made me sad that she wouldn’t spend time with the new baby until years later.
Since she left, we keep up on Facebook and we’ve even been able to Skype (she even reads my blog!), but it’s not the same. As I sit down at our table this year, I’ll be happy for the family around the table and a little sad that Malisha isn’t with us. Hopefully next year, I’ll be able to offer her a slice of my Pumpkin Crumb Cake while deciding where we should go shopping on Black Friday.
This holiday season, Cardstore is helping each of us extend our Thanksgiving celebration and promote the spirit of giving by allowing me to send each of you my special recipe and a Cardstore coupon code good for one free card! I just need you to complete these two simple steps:
Step 1: Leave a comment below sharing one Thanksgiving memory that makes you smile
Step 2: When the registration box appears, complete the form
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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cardstore. The opinions and text are all mine.
