There is much for which I am thankful

With the celebration of Thanksgiving this past week, I really began to think about the things I’m truly thankful for. And then I decided that I would do something we all used to do in elementary school: I’d make a list of all these things.

I’m thankful, first of all, for God and for my faith. Without the saving grace I so undeservedly received from my Lord, I would be absolutely nothing at all.

I’m thankful for my husband, David, who I’ve been married to for a little over a year. He is the most wonderful man in the entire world and I can’t imagine life without him.

I’m thankful for my family: my parents, my brother, my grandparents, my aunts and uncles and cousins. I might be just a bit prejudiced, but I think I have the greatest family around. We’re all a bunch of crazy goofs, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I’m thankful for my in-laws. And no, that is not a misprint. I know the stereotype that usually accompanies the word “in-laws,” but I ended up with ones that I enjoy spending time with and that have made me feel liked I’ve always been a part of their family.

I’m thankful for my job. Writing is my passion, and it’s so nice to come to work every day and get to do something that I love so much.

I’m thankful for my friends. I have friends that I’ve known since I was two years old and I have friends that I’ve just met recently. Each one of them has played a special part in my life and each memory brings a smile to my face.

I’m thankful to have a home. I know that sounds so simple, but there are plenty of people in the world that do not have a roof over their head.

I’m thankful that I live in America. With all the problems our country has had in the past and will inevitably continue to have, I’m still glad that I live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

I’ve never had the experience of having my freedom taken away (well, except when I was younger and I got grounded… but that’s a little different) because there are courageous men and women who are willing to fight for my right to live the way I choose.

I’m thankful for music. Music falls just below writing in the things-I’m-passionate-about category. I love all kinds of music, especially the kind that makes you feel like flying (or like dancing like a maniac in your car while people driving past you point and laugh…). I really feel like music is the heartbeat of life. I cannot imagine a day without some kind of music.

I’m thankful for my education. There were times during my four years of college that I couldn’t believe I was voluntarily putting myself through such torture. But I ended up with a degree that I’m proud of that eventually opened up doors for me.

I’m thankful for the church I grew up in, the church I attend now and the people at both places. They are the epitome of a church “family.”

I’m thankful for little things like chocolate, Italian food, the Twilight Saga (yes, I just said that), fuzzy socks, unexpected snow days, DVR and evenings where there’s nothing to do.

This only scratches the surface of the things in my life that I’m thankful for. Ultimately, I’m just very thankful for the life that I’ve been given, and I hope this column inspires you to think of the things in your life that you’re thankful for, too.