Thanksgiving

Okay, okay. I know that I just barely posted the 5k results post but I felt that needed its own separate post. Or perhaps Thanksgiving needs its own post.

Thanksgiving started while I was running a few miles and I made it a goal to try and think of all the things I am thankful for while I was running. I did. And I was still listing things off when I finished.

Check out this table!! My mom is amazing!

At dinner (which was AMAZING! Best Thanksgiving spread I've ever had!) my uncle Doug mentioned how it was printed in the newspaper that Thanksgiving is the least commercialized holiday. That started a short discussion about the pure nature of being Thankful. Being Thankful is the most important thing I can be in my life. It is better than being rich, having nice things, having a lot of friends, going on a lot of trips...you get what I'm saying. Being Thankful is the best! No matter what you have or what you don't have you feel thankful.

Since it was Thanksgiving two days ago I feel it's appropriate to list a few of the things I am thankful for:

My family. And I am not just talking about my immediate family. I am talking about the new family I have created in Washington. The family I left in Logan. All the people who I love dearly and who I know love me in return.

My body. I am so thankful I have a body that allows me to do what I love to do.

Beauty. I am thankful for the beauty in this world. Beautiful places, beautiful music, beautiful people. There is so much beauty all around us every second if we have the eyes to see it.

Reading and writing. Particularly writing. It clears my mind and give me new ideas. Reading the stories of others offers new perspectives and extends hope.

Work. I am thankful for work. At the Thanksgiving dinner table it is a Nelson tradition to go around the table and say things you're thankful for. My grandma mentioned how she is thankful for some of the things she had to go without and then mentioned how she is thankful for the opportunity to work. Then she told us some of the things she has experienced...my grandma never ate a turkey for Thanksgiving. They didn't have the money to buy one. Instead her dad would kill a few chickens and they'd eat those. The first time she ate a turkey is when her older brother John, who was a doctor, sent her family $5 in the mail to go buy a turkey. She grew up without a furnace...at night she would get in her bed under her covers and she described how she could see breath because it was so cold. Then she talked about work and how hard work. I felt real thankful right then and I have felt thankful since for the opportunity I have to work.

Experiences. Everyday we are blessed to have different experiences. We can meet new friends, make a difference for ourselves or other people. Or we can be idle and choose not to have those experiences. I am also thankful for the ability to choose.

I am thankful for the sun. The sun is symbolic for the things I want my life to represent. It is consistent. I can count on it. Everything it touches is better. It makes people smile and happy. It provides life and warmth. I could go on and on about the sun. I just am real, real thankful for it. I love it!

That is a basic list. I won't go into other things because I can't describe certain things. Like not too long ago I was on a flight and as the plane took off I burst into tears because I felt so thankful to live in a day when our technologies are so advanced. My family and friends made fun of me for that one.

I am thankful for a thankful heart. I am more thankful for that than anything. My parents taught me to look on the bright side of things-to be thankful for the big things and the little things and even the hard things. I strive to do that everyday.

Let's be thankful everybody! Let's be thankful every single day!