Thanksgiving hits differently when you’ve spent one on deployment.
I remember Thanksgiving Day 2004 with crystal clarity. We were in Kuwait, having just completed a “practice run” for the convoy that would take us to our new home in Iraq — Qayyarah, better known as Q-West or “Key West,” depending on who you talked to. We were loading vehicles, checking gear, and mentally preparing for the real launch into Iraq in the next 48 hours… which, as anyone who has deployed knows, feels both too long and not long enough.
But on Thanksgiving itself, the DFAC did what DFACs do on holidays: they went all-out. Turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, pies — the works. There were decorative displays, paper turkeys taped to walls, and soldiers in line wearing that mix of exhaustion and humor that only comes around during a deployment holiday.
And in that DFAC line, I ran into a few people from my previous deployment. I remember laughing and thinking: the Army really is the smallest big organization in the world.
But I also remember something else — a feeling I couldn’t quite name then, but understand much better now:
Gratitude didn’t come naturally for me. It had to be practiced.
The Gratitude Gap
Years later, during Military Resilience Training, I took the Character Strengths survey and discovered “Gratitude” wasn’t one of my top strengths. It wasn’t even in the top half. It bothered me because I knew how important gratitude was to me.
Gratitude isn't just a warm-fuzzy feeling.
It’s a resilience tool.
A grounding practice.
A spiritual reset button.
It’s one of the few things that can genuinely shift our perspective, especially during difficult seasons — whether that’s a deployment, a tough job, or a rough year.
So I worked on it. I still work on it.
Gratitude isn’t automatic for everyone, and that’s okay. What matters is building the habit — intentionally filling the “gratitude gap” day by day.
A Thanksgiving from the Other Side of the Glass
Thanksgiving while deployed is strange.
You’re grateful… but also homesick.
You’re surrounded by people… but still lonely.
You’re eating turkey… but thinking of the mission ahead.
You learn quickly that gratitude, in moments like these, isn’t about having everything you want — it’s about recognizing what you do have:
- The buddy who cracks a joke at the exact right moment.
- A DFAC worker who put in extra hours so the troops had a decent meal.
- A few familiar faces in a crowd far from home.
- The privilege of serving something bigger than yourself.
Those little points of light matter.
They matter a lot.
This Thanksgiving
As Gamma Goat Soap Company continues to grow, evolve, and reach new people, I find myself circling back to that Thanksgiving in Kuwait — and the lesson it taught me:
Gratitude isn’t a feeling. It’s a practice.
This year, I’m grateful for:
- Everyone who has supported my tiny-but-mighty veteran-owned business.
- The freedom to create something meaningful with my own two hands.
- The ability to blend service, creativity, humor, and healing into one mission.
- My customers, my community, and the folks who’ve encouraged me to keep going.
- The chance to share these stories — the real ones, the messy ones, the hopeful ones.
And I’m grateful for you, reading this.
Really.
Whether you’re spending Thanksgiving at home, with family, with friends, alone with your thoughts, pulling duty, or halfway across the world — I hope you feel a moment of warmth and connection.
Even if gratitude doesn’t come naturally, it can be practiced. It can be learned. It can be built — brick by brick, day by day.
And sometimes… it starts in a DFAC in Kuwait with a Styrofoam plate, a plastic fork, and a convoy waiting on the horizon.