Things I am Thankful For

I don’t sit down enough to truly reflect on all of the things in my life that I am thankful for.  Of course, I am grateful for the big things in my life like the house that I live in, my faith, and the life my parents have provided for me.  I feel like these topics can go unsaid.  But I never take into consideration the small things I value in my everyday life.  I love when the holidays come around so I don’t have to stress about school and life, and instead I can reflect on the positivity I’ve been blessed with.  This list could go on forever, but here is a quick top seven.

Illness, especially cancer, has affected many of the people around me.  I have seen friends and people in my neighborhood endure the pain of having a family member fight sickness.  I come from a large family on my Dad’s side and a smaller one from my Mom’s, but when I look at everyone, I am the utmost thankful for the fact that everyone is healthy.  There are no extreme and routine doctor visits or issues that are largely concerning.  Health is something that I can take for granted during a stressful week.  I am beyond thankful that I can spend the holidays with every single relative who is in great health.

I feel as if the news portrays a horror story every other day about horrible acts that happen at home or abroad.  A year ago from today I spent my days in Florence, feeling misplaced because I wasn’t eating a big turkey dinner, but instead a huge bowl of fresh pasta.  Every time a news story comes on about people being injured abroad makes my heart sink.  I am constantly reminded of how fortunate I was to have a spectacular 4 months in Europe with no harm.  For this, I am forever thankful.

I hate calling certain people out, but the individuals who affect me everyday know exactly who they are.  I am thankful for the words of encouragement, support, and empathy you each show to me every day.  You deal with my lack of knowing how to pronounce words, to my freak outs over mindless matters, to my shopping addictions.  You love me during my ups and my downs and for this, I am indebted to my friends that allow and respect me to be myself.

You saw in my first point how I have a big family.  This family has created a support system of more siblings and brothers from another mother than I could have asked for.  If the world comes crashing down, you are all the first to send a text message to check in.  I also know that many of you have been reading this blog since day one.  I am thankful for the love, support, and sense of security that you offer.  I love you all.

I am approaching my last semester of college.  I actually can not believe it.  It is bittersweet, but if you’re not emotional leaving college then something might be wrong.  I honestly do not think I would change anything about my experience at U of I.  I feel confident in the major I chose.  I have loved all of my professors and mentors that I have crossed paths with.  I have met a tremendous amount of great friends and I know that Illinois has set me up for the real world.  I think I am ready to take it on.

Hey Sar.  I think most of you know that Sarah and I bicker a lot, but it is all out of love.  Even though we may get in stupid fights, Sarah is the one person that would stand up for me and have my back no matter what the situation is.  I am so lucky to have someone that is so close in age with me to talk about life, get my nails done with, and have a buddy in almost any activity.  I am so proud of Sarah because she is killing her freshman year.  I can’t wait to see what happens for her these next few years.  In moments of anger, I take having a sister for granted, but there is no one that can ever replace her.  I am beyond thankful for Sarah.

Last, but not least, good ol’ Classically Clad.  I started this blog because I enjoyed writing about my travels and different outfits I put together.  I haven’t been able to post as often and consistently as I had originally hoped, but that’s because I need inspiration to make each post unique instead of an overflow of ordinary columns.  I have so much fun writing every single post that I do.  I am fortunate to have an outlet to express creativity and myself.  More than words can describe, I am thankful for the amount of expression, comfort, and confidence that Classically Clad has given me.  This is a place where I know I can be myself and just have fun.  Those of you that have been reading and following are all a part of making this work.  I am thankful for this outlet and for all of you that follow my blog.

Like I said, these are only seven aspects of my life I chose to appraise, but there are many many more.  I don’t usually go public with super personal posts, but this was refreshing to write.  I hope all of you have a safe, blessed,  and warm Thanksgiving.  Take some time to be with family and friends and think about a couple things you appreciate in your everyday life as well.  I know taking the time and writing this post has made this holiday a little more special for me.