Every year, the Damon family takes advantage of the opportunity given us by the International Host Program to invite international students to our home for Thanksgiving Dinner. We have been doing this for at least a decade and have had probably about 40 different students. They are students we have not met before.It is easy for us, because we have always had a potluck at Thanksgiving with many people. My husband makes the turkey and mashed potatoes. I make the dressing and gravy, and everyone brings vegetable dishes, salads, bread and desserts to share.
We always find amazing connections. One of my favorites was a year that a graduate student brought his girlfriend from Rwanda (this was years before the genocide…she is now his wife). At the time, she only spoke French.We were struggling to communicate and she was a little isolated. Then another guest came with his mother, who happened to be a retired French teacher. So they happily spoke French the entire evening.
Another year, I went to pick up one of our students. He was waiting at University Heights, a very large apartment complex. I had his name, and knew he was Chinese. A young Chinese man was standing, waiting. I pulled over. He got into the car. He looked uncertain. After trying to say his name correctly, and not doing very well, I showed him the paper with his name written on it. He looked surprised and started to shake his head. We realized that he was not MY student, but was waiting for a professor to pick him up. He helped me find the way to MY student’s apartment! It was very funny in retrospect, though I felt kind of embarrassed at the time.
Each year, we have the great chance to meet new people and talk about things we never would have before. It has been a great joy to our family…and we have had some of the best food in the world.
We recommend this idea to everyone. You never know what interesting connections you will make.
Nancy Damon
