Week 10 Thanksgiving

For many of us, Thanksgiving is a time to remember all the things we have to be thankful for. Of course, this is something we should remember to do always, rather than just once a year. I try to remind myself everyday of how lucky I am: I have a healthy and full family, friends, a wonderful, supportive boyfriend, enjoyable pets, a chance at a career I can enjoy. I am lucky enough to be in school studying what I want to study and I have been lucky to have so many excellent professors, past and present, who are always willing to help and from whom I have learned so much. I have never truly lacked in anything and have always had food and shelter. That in itself is something we should all remember to be thankful for- there are many people in the world who do not even have the basics.

Of course I am not always as thankful as I should be. Sometimes I get frustrated or overly stressed about money, or frustrating people, or, more often, myself. Our frustrations come from things that we cannot control- and sometimes we cannot control the fact that we are frustrated. We just have to ride it out and remind ourselves that things do not always make sense or go the way we planned...but they always work out in the end. Human beings are extremely resilient creatures- the more I study them the more I come to realize this- and there is always someone who has overcome so many more hardships that any of us today, particularly those of us in American society, can even begin to imagine.

And so we should of course be thankful for all the things we have to be thankful for.

It is funny how at certain points in your life you are so close to some people and you tend to take those people for granted. You think that they will always be a part of your life. But this isn't true- life takes us all in different directions, our paths separate to cross paths with others. We should be thankful for the times we have had with the people we are no longer close to or who are no longer with us. We should be thankful for all the people who are in our lives now. And we should be thankful for the people who will be with us in the future- even if we might not know who they are. Just think about it: there are people out there in the world right now, living their lives, who will greatly impact yours, and you have not even met them yet, you don't even know who they are. Isn't that amazing to think about? Someone you may not even know exists may save your life one day, or you may save theirs. 

One final thing I would like to say, and certainly people will disagree with this: Please do not get caught up in the Black Friday craze. Black Friday is, honestly, an embodiment of many of the things that are wrong and broken in our society. We (theoretically) spend a holiday being thankful for what we have and enjoying time with family and friends. And yet the next day so many Americans rush the stores to fight for low prices, to consume-consume-consume before our Thanksgiving meal is even fully digested. The holiday is, in reality, torn from people unfortunate enough to have to work jobs like retail or food. Even if they have Thanksgiving off (which many of them do not, as many "Black Friday" sales begin on Thursday), I am certain that many of them spend it not in thankfulness but in dread. I certainly would dread a ten hour shift on Black Friday, fighting back the crowds, dealing with angry shoppers wielding pepper spray...Our culture is remarkably hypocritical, and the next two days are certainly an embodiment of it. 

If you want to run out on Friday and buy buy buy then that's fine, I understand it. But I'm not. And I send out a mild request to everyone to just think about it. Think about all that you have to be thankful for before considering all the things you need to buy.

Oh and of course, weekly pictures. I am aware that they are not overly creative and you keep seeing the same people and creatures, but hey, this is my life at the moment, so you get me, Dominic, Mr. Kitty, Ripley, and whatever buildings I happen to like photographing :D

Just hanging out.

Dominic couldn't resist trying this!

Columbia's Mall, getting ready for Christmas- and always showing Mizzou pride.

We do still have some Fall colors.

Ripley likes to wake me up early in the morning and after I'm up and about I usually find her back in here...

And Mr. Kitty likes to sit on the one place I really don't want him to- my computer. Cats are so good at that.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Sending lots of love out to all those who may need it, and all of those people who have been a part of my life- past, present, and future.