Hello friends! It feels like I haven’t just sat down and chatted with y’all in a while. Book reviews, short stories, opinions, and all are great, but its good to step back and just talk about the little things.

Anyway, in light of Thanksgiving on tomorrow here’s what I’m thankful for.

• Family – cliche I know, but for a reason. What would I be without my parents (even when they irk me), my crazy yet sweet siblings, and grandparents. Seriously, I don’t know anyone whose shaped my character more than my mom and dad. The gratefulness I have (gratefulness doesn’t even fully capture the feeling) for their support and love is more than I can express.
• Friends – so so so grateful for all my lovely friends. The close friendships, and the just budding ones. Their support in the moments I felt like I was drowning and the moments the sun poured through, touches me deeply.

• Education – as much as I complain about school, education is a wonderful thing. Without education we wouldn’t have medication, our highways and freeways, our scholars, etc. etc. Most importantly, education, if viewed and pursued correctly, glorifies God and draws us closer to him. It widens our appreciation of creation and thus brings us closer to God.
• A house to live in, and a bedroom to call my own (I’m sure other introverts will understand the (dare I say) necessity of having one’s own space). There are so many in this world who don’t have a home, and its an absolute blessing to have a roof over my head. I pray I don’t take my comfort for granted and that I might use it to bless others.
• Writing – this aspect of my life has taken on a whole new meaning in the past two years. This is such an outlet for me, a way of pouring out my heart and soul. I don’t know what I’d do without it.

• (On a less serious note), COFFEEEEEEE! Ah that rich, dark, caffinated drink that brings so much joy to my lips and my heart. What would I do without my lattes. (And yes that’s a statement not a question.)
• Books –  I truly would suffer without my books. In the last year I feel my love for literature and my understanding of it has grown and flourished more than it ever has. It’s a part of me that I cannot shake. I thank the Lord for the stories he’s let cross my way and all that I’ve learned through them.

• Free Speech – wow this is a big one. I’m an opinioned person, and honestly I don’t know if I could thrive in a world where my voice was taken from me. But in a larger, and much more important sense than my tendance to babble on, without free speech its much more difficult to speak truth. Well, truth cannot be silence by law, but the lack of free speech is much more difficult when one’s life is at stake.
• Roadtrips – most people find these boring, but I love the oppertunity to view the world in a different way, to dream, and to spend time with my family.

• Access to the history and literature – although the news and media are generally biased and therefore skewed, I am beyond thankful that I am able to explore historical documents and literature for myself and shape my own opinions and knowledge of the past.
• My church – it’s such a blessing to have a place where I can enjoy the company of other believers, soak in solid teaching, and grow in my faith. These definitely are not found easily.
• Safety – while danger most certainly lurks in any country in the world, I am so grateful to live in a place where I don’t feel my life is in jeopardy every time I leave my house.
• Jesus’s grace toward me – I marvel that the Lord would send his son for me, for me! What he sees in this babbling, awkward, foolish girl who so often pushes him away, I don’t know. But he loves me, he’s died for me, he’s risen again, and he wraps me in his grace. That is enough.

Some little things:

• my bed and its soft warm comfort
• my comfy chair
• my bookshelves (these colorful shelves make me so warm inside)
• the mountains and wildflowers and pine trees and aspens and snow

• good movies
• moving soundtracks and beautiful sonatas
• my piano

• small acts of kindness
• pinterest
• my own car
• sweaters
•  lattes (including the pumpkin spice from the local coffee shop I just finished)

• rainy days
• blogging
• musicals (Dear Evan Hansen, Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, anyone?)
• food, just food, in general, but specifically soup and bread, oh! and chocolate and warm baked good, mmmmhhhhmmmm

So what are you guys thankful for?

(All photos from Pinterest, except the coffee photo and the one of my friends and I.)