To Be Thankful

THANKSGIVING MONTH IS HERE! 

I love it. I love November. It's my aunt/BFF/#1s birthday (and the big 3-0 this year!), it's when it gets SUPER crispy outside and it's the month of my favorite holiday (other than my birthday, of course). 

Yep. This little red is turning THIRTY ladies and gents. 3-0.

and.....

Thanksgiving. 

What does it mean to you? To me, I try to take the month and reflect *often* on my blessings, my trials and tribulations, successes, growths, lessons, all of the things I love about this life I have been given so Thank-LESS-ly (at times). 

It's so easy to forget the blessings we are GIVEN, not received through luck or chance. We get into these ruts sometimes and say "wow that's so lucky." or the "right place at the right time" type-talk. No no. That was the Lord. Every time. 

One thing that has really helped me be more mindful more often about my blessings is running. I spend a lot of time sorting through my thoughts on my runs, and many of those thoughts return to the simple words of "thank you" -- Thank you Lord, for the beauty of Michigan fall, thank you ME for committing to a healthier me, thank you family for being so supportive, even with all these pesky miles that get in the way... I mean I do say thank you, A LOT, when running.

Another thing that has helped me appreciate my blessings regularly is the population(s) I encounter as a social worker. Before going back to graduate school I worked with geriatrics and encountered people who were going through things that I hadn't ever had to go through, and that really helped me put my minuscule woes into perspective. I now categorize my complaints like this:
is it a big deal, medium deal, or small deal?
Small Deal.
Medium Deal.
Big Deal.

That's it. Imagine how we could cut down on thanklessness this way. 90% of the things we complain about are Small Deals. For example: no groceries, cold outside, stepped in a puddle, forgot to turn the light off, so-and-so annoyed me, I'm tired, I was late, they were late, small deal.

hahaha clearly. Small deal guys.

Looking forward to cooking my very first Thanksgiving dinner and celebrating all that I am thankful for -- And if I burn the biscuits or screw up the turkey....guess what? Small deal. :)