Letters from Abroad

BOLOGNA, Italy –You never realize how American you are until you leave the country. \nThe National Anthem has never stirred deep feelings of patriotism and pride in me. I could live without baseball games and Mom’s hot apple pie. I waited all of my life to get out of the U.S. I wanted to see exotic places, eat new foods and experience the art and history of faraway lands, because I felt that home was lacking a bit in the culture department. \nSpending three months isolated from the true “American culture” – which I took for granted for so many years – has made me come to recognize and appreciate what it means to be an American.\nDon’t get me wrong. I am not getting all sentimental about the stars and stripes. I have done my fair share of explaining that I wasn’t old enough to vote when Bush was elected, therefore he isn’t my fault. We also can learn a thing or two from the Europeans about how to appreciate and preserve the heritage that we have. But, especially as the holidays approach, I am starting to get a little homesick for the little things that make me American. \nI have been busy this week stringing popcorn to hang on my Christmas tree, blasting Mariah Carey tunes and making hot apple cider. \nThis weekend, a few of my American friends and I partook in the good ol’ Midwestern tradition of a progressive dinner. For those of you who don’t know what I am talking about, that is where you go to at least five different houses and you eat for at least eight solid hours. Each respective homeowner (or apartment-renter) makes a course in the meal. We had a wonderful time and spent hours discussing the latest Hollywood scandals and singing trashy pop songs. God bless America. \nI am really going to miss Thanksgiving this year, with my family and all the fixings. When you sit down this year to a huge turkey and mashed potatoes and green beans and stuffing and pumpkin pie (... OK, I have to stop because I am drooling on my keyboard), think for a minute about what it really means to be a citizen of the U.S. of A, and appreciate our traditions and customs, however silly and seemingly insignificant they may be.