A Thankful Thanksgiving

It's that time of the year! A time to stuff your face with all the home-cooked meals and not feel bad about it, the time of the year where you are obligated to cheat on your diet if you're on one, the time of the year to see the family you haven't seen since the last major holiday, the time of the year where you plan to attack any other shoppers without any guilt, but have we forgotten the real meaning of Thanksgiving, I mean, it's right there: THANKSgiving. For some reason, we have set a specific date of November 26th to be "thankful" for things in our lives, but shouldn't we be thankful for those things year round!? We also seem to forget some of the things we should be thankful for, we take so many things for granted, that when you truly sit down to think about everything in your life, you fully understand how grateful we actually are. Obviously, my family. They are always there for me, but not because they have to (I mean they lowkey do have to) but because we are just so close. Literally. Maybe too close at times. But that's how it'll always be. They are all my best friends. And for that alone, I am thankful. Parents do things you never fully realize, you just kind of expect. Paying for things. Cooking for you. Laundry when you're home. Taking care of you when you're sick: a few weeks ago, I got terribly sick, my dad heard me from downstairs and hurried upstairs to check on me, but knowing I felt so awful, he layed in bed with me. I got sick again about 45 minutes later, the same thing happened but my mom heard me this time too, both of them came in my room to snuggle and brought me medicine and a cold pack until I was asleep again. I am almost 21 years old and they still cut my food when I ask (and I ask every time, of course). The last time I was home was Halloween (almost a month), and I thought they were going to croak over when I walked in the door... moments like this are ones that really bring you home. My sister and I have always been close as well, she is a little over 4 years older than me, but she has always been like a second mother to me. When we were younger, I decided I wanted to share a room with her instead... so bringing all of my things in at once, I barged in saying, "I'm moving in!", and without hesitation, she continued on her AIM chats and popped the trundle bed up for me and attached it to hers, basically making it one giant bed. I stayed in there for months! She moved into an apartment halfway through her college years, leaving me basically an only child, but when she was away, we kind of lost touch in my eyes, when she moved back things got better, then she got married, and now I feel as if we are closer than we have been. Slumber parties with her are the way to life.Again, obviously I am thankful for my friends. I have always struggled with friends... not that I had trouble making friends, I had trouble having friends. I was always the type to let anyone and everyone step on me, I would apologize to them for something they did to me just so nobody would be mad at each other and I could keep those friends. But, like I have said before, they weren't actual friends, they wouldn't have done half of the things I did for them. Now I have found those true friends, a whole new set of friends and a few old friends, that truly fit the definition of a real friend. These types of friends see you at every stage in your life and every emotional state in your life, and for some reason continue to stick around. Not only do these people see the front you put on for everyone else, but they see the complete opposite side that you never open up. Not just anyone you can share that type of emotion with, and for that, I am truly happy that I can finally do with these select people. Growing up we thought the more friends we had, the better we were... no no, not even close. Yes, surround yourself with great people, no matter how many that consists of, but having those "right by your side" friendships, that's something that is irreplaceable. Whether they be 2 minutes away from you, 65 miles from you, or 10 states away from you. Whether you talk every day, every few weeks, or every few months. If you can continue these friendships with ease, that's when you have found the match.My soulmate. Whether that be the man of my dreams that I have yet to meet, or the person/people in my life that are just apart of me that I truly would not be myself without. (Not that I'm going to get into the whole "love" conversation, yet... you'll learn I'm not the best lover of "love") I am thankful for those heartbreaks I have had. The little f-boys that didn't do a thing for me, yet still taught me little things, or the two very special guys in my life that truly broke me yet made me into the person I am today. I would never in a million years have any harsh feelings towards any of these guys, but they all have impacted me in some way, taught me things about myself or "relationships", and will always be connected to me. I am thankful that if I have a soulmate out there, that he is prepared for me (maturity wise, but also because I can be a piece of work...), that he is happy, that he is growing and learning about himself, that he is going for his dreams, and will collide with my path on the way there for me to support the rest of the way while he supports me the same. If he is not out there for me, I am thankful that he isn't. I never want to be one to settle just because it's expected (again, we will continue this conversation in a different post), I am more than happy on my own, I know myself and am growing, I know how to support myself, I am me. And being me, truly me, is what I have found to be one of the most special things to me that I am grateful for.Morehead State University and my many jobs. I am so thankful to be able to go to a university that I love, and have always wanted to attend. That is my home. Nothing makes me feel more comfortable than the little town and campus of Morehead. It just clicks. I am obsessed with my major and my professors make it that much better, and of course the crazy group of students in my major that share every class with me, they all give me life. We are a mini family, I suppose. But to be able to attend college in general is something I am extremely grateful for, not having a student debt or worrying about not graduating on time or graduating at all, I am beyond blessed. I am also thankful for my jobs. I have always been a work freak, I love to work. I have had some of the best jobs with the best coworkers. I have experienced so many things through each job and learned things from each one that do and don't have to anything to do with the job description whatsoever. I am also thankful for my passions... though this isn't in the realm of school or work, I pray one day that it will be connected in some way. It is a blessing in disguise to me. Being able to indulge myself into these passions and clear my head from anything and everything, or to just have that time to myself doing something that makes me... me. One day, if and when I can turn these passions into work, that day will truly be a grateful day. I cannot wait!Things that we take for granted that we should alllll be thankful for, are the things that we don't even notice. Breathing. Walking. Talking. Hearing. Seeing (even with glasses like myself). Smelling. Tasting. Touching. Writing. Reading. Honestly, I am thankful right now that I have strep/bronchitis... that means I am alive... that means that my body is working how it should and that it's now fighting off illness. I am thankful I am able to wake up each morning (or afternoon when I sleep in) and be able to do these things without a second thought. So many people out there have difficulties doing these things, but even then, they are doing it in some way, that is a blessing.Last, but not least, and honestly, the most important. Best for last, I should say. God. I am so thankful that I was raised in a home where God was present. Where lessons were taught. Where God was the center. I had always been taught that God was my savior, do right by Him with your relationship with Him and you will enter into Heaven, what we were all taught, right? But it wasn't until I was 17 when I truly felt God near. When I heard Him speak the first time. I am a very distracted child of God, which isn't great, but honestly, most of us are. We have to learn and understand slowing down to listen to Him and learn. We get distracted by outside things... we fall more towards society than standing out. We don't listen to God when He speaks, then get mad when we need Him and He is silent. I have seen what it's like to live and walk with God, and I have also seen what being set off the path can do, as well. Yes, it is hard to stay on track all the time. But making a little change day by day and continuing to grow in your relationship with Him will make a complete difference in your life. That is what I am thankful for. That He can see how distracted I can get, forgive me for that, and continue to guide me and bless me with the things I have.