In the spirit of thanksgiving, I have come up with a list of five things that I am thankful for this season. I’ve never had the traditional American Thanksgiving experience with lots of family because we don’t have a lot of relatives in the U. S. The other reason is because my family doesn’t like how Turkey tastes. We actually had pet turkeys in Kenya and one of them used to bully me by vibrating its feathers towards me. I was around 6 years old so the force of the vibration was actually enough to knock me down. After some “Kenyan martial arts” training from my grandfather, I stood up to the turkey and ruffled its feathers. This worked for a little while until one day when the Turkey caught me off guard while I was walking out of the house. Not too long after that, the turkey died mysteriously. My theory is that my Grandpa had something to do with it but unfortunately heaven doesn’t have a phone to ring him up.

Without further ado, here’s the top 5 things I am thankful for this season:

1. Having more time to experiment with my natural hair. Seems like I am finally getting the hang of it. For those who are curious, I use the L-O-C method which stands for Liquid (water), Oil, (apricot oil), and Conditioner (Cantu leave-in-conditioner). I also moisturize my hair and scalp with melted castor oil; I’ve noticed my scalp really appreciates this because I have a dry and sensitive scalp due to damage from chemical relaxer treatments in the past. I might do a video on this one day but in the mean time, there’s lots of videos on Youtube for every hair and scalp type.
2. Being around my family everyday is also a blessing since I spent 6 years away from home for school. I definitely got very home sick during those times and its so wonderful to be around them for all the milestones that we’ve experienced this year.
3. I am thankful in advance for all the good foods I am going to be eating this holiday season. From goat, my mom’s world winning pilau, samosa, and more, we’re definitely going to have multiple food babies. I am on samosa duty this year so I can’t wait when my family can’t get enough of them.
4. Being done with school for the indefinite future is also music to my ears. Before my grandfather passed away about 10 years ago, I clipped his toe nails and he blessed me with his dream for me to be a doctor. This year I am proud to have fulfilled that dream by getting my doctor of pharmacy degree. All thanks to God and my family for supporting me through that journey.
5. A gratitude list is never complete without giving thanks for good health. I definitely don’t take for granted that I get to wake up everyday and be able to do everything that I need to do. I was definitely better at my fitness at the beginning of the year than I am now but hey it’s the holidays. I have also been meditating for the past 10 days so at least I am working out my brain. For those interested in trying out meditation, I used the app Headspace but Youtube is also another place to find free guided meditation.