To celebrate this holiday, I had decided to journey over to Leiden for the Thanksgiving Day church service. This was an amazing experience and one that I will never forget!
Not only did I walk down the same cobblestone streets that many of the Pilgrims had frequented, but I also attended a church service in the very same place that the Pilgrims had worshiped. Many of their family members are buried in this church.
The Pilgrims, of which many had to leave their families behind, traveled at great risk and across a vast ocean. These brave individuals were in search of 'freedom'...
Photos taken of the church....
Sitting inside and waiting for the Thanksgiving service to begin...
As a side note... many of my students were a part of this service...
the ASH choir and band provided some incredible music...
The 'boy scouts' in Den Haag...
Very touching speech by a woman who was born and raised in Leiden.... part of her family left on the Mayflower... she had referred to Americans as 'her cousins'... she also expressed how Thanksgiving is her favorite day of the year... because it is a holiday about 'gratitude'...
Our U.S. Ambassador for The Netherlands...
Across the street...
Outside the church...
A look back toward the church...
The following photos were taken during my walk back to Leiden's Central Station
to catch a train back to Den Haag.
One of those moments...
I saw this and simply smiled...
it was both a small reminder of all the 'little things in life' that simply exist around me, but often go unnoticed...
and it was a reflection of the link between where I am today in my life....
and my 'American roots'.
Today is a beautiful Thanksgiving Day!
... and I am, once again, reminded how lucky I am...
I am ever so grateful!