thanks to the giving

Oh the day of giving thanks. Here I am doing a little bit of reflection...shocker. But realizing that my god there is so much in this world that I have to be thankful for. I was catching up with my beautiful friend Eve tonight and we were discussing some of the life changes she is going through right now. And what is so amazing about her is that she gets so passionately and internally involved with her process that all she can do is talk and talk and explore her mind and navigate her emotions. But in the meantime, while dealing with all of these changes going on in and around her, she wants a turtle. And not just any turtle, a miniature turtle, even though--unbenownced to her, miniature turtles don't exist. Those are just baby turtles. But she has decided against this marvelous idea, because turtles live to be about 100 years old. And I made a comment in return to her statement on the longevity of turtles, and I said..."you CAN'T get a turtle now, because then it would outlive us!" And as I mentioned that, I became scared.

I became scared of not being alive all of a sudden, I became so consumed for about 10 seconds over this reality that it was almost all overpowering. It was bizarre, and it made me realize that no matter what, there is so much beauty in this world that I feel deserves recognition.

I love that I have this incredible set of courses that I am taking right now that is challenging me and expanding me as an individual more than I have ever experienced in my life. I love that I have an adoring family that calls and reaches out to me 200000 times a day (sometimes too often). I love that whenever I walk into my room, it is warm because I love being warm. I love that I have friends that I can count on to be there for me when I need them. I love that whenever I walk into my work office, I can guarantee that I will laugh for 90% of the time. I love that I live in a town where the backyard is breathtakingly beautiful. I love that coffee now comes with a intricate design woven into the foam. I love that people stop and say genuinely say hello to one another. I love that I am comfortable with who I am as a human being so that I don't have to ask those unanswerable questions regarding my identity (at least for the moment). I love that my mother still comes and wakes me up in the morning when I'm home and lies beside me until I am awake. And I love even more that when I get up, she asks me for 5 more minutes. I love that my father loves to spend his day on his back porch reading with a glass of wine and the sounds of the creek. I love that I have a brand new nephew who is two months old who I don't even know very well and am already obsessed with. I love that people read this blog. I love that even though I have had a rough stretch of it, I still find beauty in the day. I love that I can still think of those people I have lost with fondness and smiles. I love that I still knit and hook rugs. I love that I still do paint by numbers. I love vintage t-shirts. I love nutella. I love the day and the clear sky. I love that there is a paragraph that I have already written on things I love and that I could still go on.

I won't though. Because I feel like filling you with things that I love and am thankful for, isn't really as meaningful to each of you personally. So think about what you are thankful for, and what you love in this world. And express it in whatever way you feel appropriate. There is so much beauty in the simplicity of the day. But I feel it is important to both see and feel that beauty. It is the simple beauty that in my mind is the truest.