This month, in the spirit of the season, I offer you a compilation of ridiculous, hilarious, and just plain stupid things that I am thankful for this month.
First of all, I am thankful for my Tarha. This month I killed a few dozen cockroaches by the power of my potent Middle Eastern poison. Of the many things a headscarf is good for, one is tying around one’s nose and mouth so one can breathe as one sprays poison across the floors and corners of one’s bathroom.
I am also incredibly thankful for my Tarha because it keeps people confused for a little bit longer about what is going on with this strange pale woman who speaks very poor Arabic. This month, while at a flea market, a man asked me in a bewildered tone of voice, was I Russian? No? Well then, I must be Polish? No? Well, where was I from? The simple act of covering my head and dressing in hijab gives me a few extra seconds of breathing room before people start to figure out what questions they want to pummel me with.
Second of all, I am very thankful for cheap, no membership required, women only gyms. Praise the Lord that our roommate recommended we go to this place (and made us aware that such a place existed in the first place!). It felt so good to run without a headscarf on a creaky treadmill overlooking a smoggy sunset for just a little bit (although it is alarming how quickly things go downhill when you sit in a chair all day).
Thirdly, I am thankful for my ability to dance like a stiff fish. It is a great source of entertainment to my fellow females at the gym (especially the Middle Eastern ones). The best part is not only do they laugh openly, but they grab different parts of my body and try to show me how to move them less rigidly (bless them for trying). One thing I learned this month is that it doesn’t matter what size you are, how old you are, or whether or not you cover your head - women in this part of the world know how to dance.
Lastly, I am thankful for a greater cultural understanding of the relationship between traffic and pedestrians. Getting my feet wet with crossing two lane roads and darting between 20mph cars, and working my way up to running through roundabouts and 40 mph cars, gave me the self confidence I needed to walk lane by lane across an eight lane freeway with cars driving past me at 60mph. I am also incredibly thankful to God for preserving my life while in the midst of that poor life choice.
Happy (late) Thanksgiving, and may all of you enjoy the blessings of holiday shopping and searching for those perfect presents over the next month. Take a moment to be thankful for the order and sense that is in your life (especially the order and sense that you take for granted), and be thankful for even the little things. For me at least, those are the things that keep life interesting.