giving thanks.

“It is good to be just plain happy. It’s a little better to know that you are happy; but to understand that you’re happy, and to know why and how and still be happy—to be happy in the being and the knowing—well, that is beyond happiness, that is bliss.” –Henry Miller

That Miller quote really stopped me in my tracks today. It is basically the whole basis and reasoning as to why I started this little blog spot of mine. I’ve always been a generally happy person. God has blessed me with such fabulous people and life experiences to really have no excuse to be anything but happy. But this idea of bliss, well that’s what has really had me thinking these last few months. To be honest, it has become one of my favorite words. And the idea of working each day to achieve it has been a task I am willing to fight to achieve. This quote, well, it sums it up just perfectly in my opinion. Because, while we may all have a reason or two to be happy (I hope), I think that recognizing and being conscious of how, where, why, and who that happiness comes from, that is the goodness that can send you right into a blissful state.

Ok, just thought I’d share. To be honest, I couldn’t resist sharing. But anyways, since it is November, shocking I know, I thought I’d change things up a little bit on here. While I am not a big fan of Halloween, hello, I stayed home and baked all weekend, I am a big fan of Thanksgiving. Not simply because mashed potatoes and stuffing are two of my top 5 favorite foods, but also because I adore the idea of giving thanks for all of the various things we are grateful for. My darling older sister kept a “Thankful Journal” for numerous years, where each day she wrote down one thing she was grateful for that day. I admired her for it then, and even now, this idea of a blog also somewhat stemmed from her years of thankful journaling. And while I jokingly tell most people that though I love my sister, I’ve spent most of my life hopscotching around her footsteps rather than following in them, this time, just for this month, I’d like to walk in them for a while. Worth trying once, right?

So anyways, in the spirit of Kelly and Thanksgiving, I would like to just write out one thing each day that I am thankful for in the month of November. As always, I will need to recap a bit, seeing as it is already November 3!...

Tuesday, November 1: I was so thankful that a new student volunteer of mine actually asked me to stay LONGER than our tutoring time. She was so dedicated to helping a high school student with his work that she just could not leave until he had succeeded. This gesture totally warmed my heart.

Wednesday, November 2: Not quite as inspirational, but I am thankful for my DVR. Seriously, I don’t know what my evenings would look like if I didn’t have that wonderful invention to fill my time.

Thursday, November 3: So extremely grateful for my family and friends. My parents could not be more supportive people, and one of my best friends sent a very sweet e-mail my way. They are all so fabulous and I am thankful for each of them every single day.

xoxo--K