It’s good to be here, and I have many things for which to be thankful. Perhaps first and foremost is that F and I had a very nice dinner together which may well be the start of a healing process. The summer and fall have been very difficult for both of us, and as with so many things, misunderstandings have made the bad things much worse than they needed to be. We have the usual misunderstandings that couples have, and then we’ve got a few more layers on top. Cultural differences are a subtle threat that that are usually overlooked. Yet the very essence of culture is that everyone takes it for granted and considers it normal, thus giving it no thought. I would argue that we often know the least about our own cultures for that very reason. In fact, one of the interesting side effects of my having spent so much time in Mexico, and having learned Spanish and gained access to this culture is that I’ve learned a ton about my own culture, with its unspoken mores, assumptions, and practices. Some of those things have tripped me up with F, and vice versa. Language is also something of a barrier, though less than it used to be. Sure, I’m pretty fluent, but I still find it quite challenging to have a nuanced conversation. I often feel that I’m either too blunt or haven’t really said what I wanted to say.
Where we go from here remains unclear, but a rapprochement beckons.
Tomorrow (Thanksgiving Day) I will be particularly suelto, as F has to work, and I so far have little in the way of plans. L is tied up until Friday after work. I’m hoping to catch up with another friend here who a few years ago left a career with an international advertising firm to open his mid-century furniture and decorative arts store in La Condesa. But his father is seriously ill in hospital, so Julio’s schedule is hard to count on. And I totally understand his need to prioritize his father.
Mexico has no tradition of thanksgiving like ours, though they do have a name for ours: El Día de Acción de Gracias. But it’s not celebrated here, and based on a single conversation with my taxi driver from the airport, not terribly well understood. But how many Gringos understand Día de Muertos? Readers of this blog aside, not many, I’d wager.
I may seek out a Thanksgiving dinner in one of the hotels rumored to offer such things. Or I may simply “go native,” eat tacos, and literally count my blessings which are many. I feel very fortunate in my life. I have great health, a wonderful family, amazing friends, and now an amazing degree of freedom. And of course I am thankful for all my readers and wonderful friends I’ve met and have yet to meet through blogging.
May you enjoy a wonderful Thanksgiving and all the blessings that this life has to offer.
El Gringo Suelto 
We had Thanksgiving in Merida, and it was such a blessing! Our new friends invited us to a family dinner, and in our honor, all the U.S. traditions were honored. I honestly would have been happy with tacos, too. But I was grateful for the turkey and stuffing.
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Wow! How nice! How was the turkey? There’s a place on Insurgentes Sur in DF that specializes in turkey, but I’ve never been. I’ve always wondered what Mexican turkey would taste like. Saludos!
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I´m weighing in a few days late on this post, but better late than never… right? In 2010 I spent Canadian Thanksgiving in D.F. and felt perfectly in the spirit because I was so “thankful” to be there. I like how you described La Capital as NYC, DC and SFO all rolled into one exciting place. And your reflection that forgiveness and thankfulness are so alike sits very well with me. How much time is wasted holding a grudge or a “position” that solidifies unhappiness?
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Hi Joanna, thanks for commenting. I’m definitely in the school of “better late than never.” I love DF. For me, there’s a certain ineffable happiness just strolling the streets there, admiring the old buildings, watching the pedestrians, and the street vendors. It’s a wonderful place, and I hope I can spend some more time there soon. Saludos.
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I agree with you, Kim, about how learning about another culture sharpens our perspectives about our own. I am in the US, and I am very aware of the consumerism that engulfs this culture. As far as Thanksgiving, I have only celebrated it in Honduras as a US type holiday because I was invited to a Thanksgiving Day celebration at the one US military base in Central America. We had Hondurans and Americans at the base near Comayagua, Honduras. For other years, I worked as if it was a regular day.
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I had a very non-Thanksgiving dinner with a friend. We ate crepes, and had a wonderful time, but it felt like just another day. I kind of missed a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, but I figure I’ll catch up at Christmas. I did however, spend some time counting my blessings, which are many. You, of course, are TOTALLY right about how consumerist our culture is. While I like nice things, I don’t let them run my life, and I can be happy in modest surroundings too. Thanks for stopping by.
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I wish more people would celebrate it in Mexico. Some years ago a few hotels and restaurants in the tourist zone of Monterrey used to serve a Thanksgiving dinner, but I guess that’s gone because yesterday I tried to find one until, very tired, I settled with some carne asada and mashed potatoes. The older I grow, the more I feel that there is so much to be thankful for and that’s why a celebration like Thanksgiving makes so much sense to me.
Also, thank you for visiting http://www.elbibis.blogspot.mx Kim, I really thank you for your suggestions — each phrase is truly profound and very enlightening. I promise to be less hard on myself, go with the flow, and wait for the right time to fulfill my dreams. Hugs! Enjoy beautiful Mexico City.
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Well thanks for stopping by! I really enjoyed both your post about English and your work to become a translator, and the other post IN English about your bumpy ride lately. By the way, I thought I left a comment on your translator post, but I just checked and didn’t see it. Did the system eat it?
Saludos!
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As you can imagine, I am jealous of your current location, wish you the very best of luck with Mr F, and sincerely hope that we might all be reunited one September evening in the Zocalo in the not too distant future!!
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That would be very nice. Saludos.
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Saludos!
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Personally, I think skipping a big holiday every now and then would be liberating.
After all, inexorably there will be another one next year…
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Actually, there is a certain element of that feeling this morning. I feel like I have a day off, but life outside my hotel window here sounds exactly the same as it did yesterday. And I’m going to meet Julio for dinner, which should be nice too. Happy Thanksgiving.
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Your post just made me realize how close the concepts of thanksgiving and forgiving are.
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Indeed. Forgiveness and thankfulness are both key ingredients to happiness, and like anything important, can also be very difficult. Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for reading.
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I celebrated “Día de los Muertos” growing up in the States with all it’s food garnishes, so why not Thanksgiving in Mexico. Afterall, it’s about gatherings, reminiscing, giving thanks, and creating a meal for a celebration.
Tradition, in whatever way one has chosen it to
be, is a great way of keeping centered, nurtured, and alive in spirit.
Well, I need to go start my traditional Ecuadorian stuffing, but before I do…
Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving!
!Kim, disfruta tu viaje!
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I’m having a great time, and today will be wonderful too, however it turns out. Ecuadorian stuffing? That sounds interesting. ¡Buen Provecho!
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The “puerco” stuffing (lots of veggies also) is great. I had it for breakfast with a fried egg over easy… leftovers are the best sometimes.
DF sounds like a wonderful big city with all its cultural events, and from what I hear many good restaurants… I have never been.
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I always like to tell people that it’s like NYC, DC, and San Francisco rolled into one chaotic, exciting, fun place. You must try it some time.
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I think even mentioning that there is no Thanksgiving in Mexico reflects how everyone is captured by his own culture.
Thanksgiving began with the Pilgrims and is entirely American. Of course, there is no Thanksgiving in Mexico. And the Mohammedans do not celebrate Easter either.
No matter. Enjoy the visit.
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Despite my own somewhat multicultural background (immigrant parents), I am indeed captured by my own culture. Outside my hotel window, it’s just another day in Mexico City. The only marker of Thanksgiving is a closed US Embassy, a building which pains me every time I pass by, due to its ugly, fortress-like nature.
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Glad to read you and F are having a meeting of the minds. Interesting choice of words ‘rapprochement’. Here is hoping you attain your desired outcome. Have some fun – es muy importante.
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To achieve my desired outcome, I first have to know what that might be, LOL… But in all seriousness, nothing is ever as one expects it to be, last night’s dinner included. It was nice, I think we’ve made some progress, but the future is as unknown as ever. But I’ll definitely have fun today, whatever happens.
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