Thanksgiving

I give full credit to my mom, I only know how to make
them because of her. They came out pretty decent thankfully.

Thanksgiving is almost here, although here in England the only people aware of it are usually the Americans who begin to crave turkey and pumpkin pie, sweet potato casserole, stuffing, gravy and mashed potatoes. Last night some friends invited me to partake in the Regent's College Thanksgiving dinner, created by several amazing women who can cook incredibly well. I contributed only some rolls but there was a turkey that was delicious and all the fixings, there were several apple pies and pumpkin, stuffing and cranberry jelly for the rolls.

This is the treacle well of St. Frideswide, the first
person to have been at Oxford, and the well that
inspired the rabbit hole of Alice in Wonderland.

As the time here has gone on, I miss my family and my home but there are some things I am learning to be thankful for about Oxford and England. So in honor of Thanksgiving here are a few things that I am thankful for here,
1. The libraries--the Bodleian, Duke Humphrey's, Keble library, all of the books that are kept so carefully and enjoyed as the treasures of the university.
2. The rain--it rains a lot, and while it can be annoying to get to class with an umbrella and the ends of your jeans getting soaked up to your knee, I'll never be ungrateful for rain. (Result of growing up in Kansas farm country)
3. University park--a park of about 70 acres just across the street from where I live. It is a spot of wildness and nature, there are ducks and birds in the ponds, a river with a high bridge that goes into what must be fairyland, trees that are losing their leaves. The leaves are blanketing the paths and rustle gently in the breezes. I once saw two swans in the pond, did you know that swans are royal property, all swans in Great Britain belong to the queen and it is a federal offense to kill one?

This is what Oxford students do. We made the
White House out of Legos. 

4. Friends here--coming to a new place making new friends can be difficult but there are several people that have welcomed me and I have truly enjoyed getting to know them and spend time with them. One of the most interesting things is to get an entirely new perspective on life and how the world looks from a different point of view.
5. The hidden and unexpected moments of history, every now and then I walk upon something that feels like it hasn't changed in the last five hundred years.

So, like Dorothy I say that there is no place like home, but still, England is amazing. I'm still finding my feet, finding my place here but slowly I am learning to treasure and savor (savour) each moment in the day. I stop and soak in the sights and take walks through meadows, and enjoy where I am today.

Duke Humphrey's Library

I wish I could take a picture. I wish I could show you where I am right now, I wish you were here with me to see it. I am looking at 17th and 18th century books in front of me, the desk is scarred and pitted from years of use, it is connected to the bookshelves themselves. I am looking at titles like "Owen on the Epistle to the Hebrews" written in the mid-1600s, two books down is Irenaei Opera, the Work of Irenaeus, this book was written in 1675 but Irenaeus was a saint from the second century. There are Latin Bibles, Hebrew Bibles, tomes that look like they have stood guard for centuries. (Which they probably have.) I sit by a window with the blinds half closed. I look into a lawn, I think for Exeter College. The leaves have mostly fallen, but some hang on, the green grass is blanketed with yellow and red leaves. There is a reading lamp above me that provides just enough but not too much light. The ceiling is painted with the Oxford motto and crest, "Dominus illuminatio mea." The Lord is my light. I need to study, I'm looking at two books written in the seventeenth century about two of the Archbishops of Canterbury under Elizabeth I. Its just so amazing to me that these are my research books, that I am able and allowed to look at these books.

I will be here for a few hours and then go eat something and then probably come back here a while longer. You can only have pencils, no pens, and no food or drink, even water in here. Other than that, it is the perfect place and I will probably show up here more and more. As much as I love Hale Library back at Kansas State, it has nothing on this place.

I'll write more soon, but I am half over with the term and work is never done. See ya'll later.