Thanksgiving is on its way, and the sole purpose is to realize what we truly have to be grateful for on a daily basis. While I find new reasons every single day, I am fortunate in the manner that I have more to be thankful for than I typically may remember. Though some days it is hard to see through to the positives of my daily life, I understand that I take so many things for granted. On that note, I have so many things to be thankful for.

I’m thankful to have a roof over my head.

I’m thankful to have a family that loves me, no matter how big or small.

I’m thankful to have friends that are always there no matter where I go.

I’m thankful to wake up every morning and receive a second chance.

I’m thankful to have people that I miss in every city I go.

I’m thankful to have healthy meals every day.

I’m thankful to have a dog that sees me as his world.

I’m thankful to have clothes on my back.

I’m thankful to have an open heart to let people in, and I’m thankful to have a heart that refuses to let those same people go.

I’m thankful to have things I’m good at.

I’m thankful to have the opportunity to get an education.

I’m thankful for the church I attend and the people that attend with me.

I’m thankful to have a God that forgives me and loves me and gave me life.

I’m thankful to have someone to make me smile through my hardest days.

I’m thankful to live in a nation that allows freedom.

I’m thankful to have the opportunity to follow my dreams.

I’m thankful to have a strict work habit.

I’m thankful to have humor to allow me to laugh.

I’m thankful to have tears that allow me to mourn.

I’m thankful to have ancestors and family that I will always miss.

I’m thankful to have riches, not in money, but in people I’m blessed with.

I’m thankful to grow up and experience life, regardless how tough it may be at times.

I’m thankful to know what pain feels like to tell me that I’ve felt happiness before.

I’m thankful to be welcomed and accepted by strangers.

I’m thankful for the prayers passed down through my family.

I’m thankful to be able to help those in need.

I’m thankful to be healthy, although not perfectly, it could be much worse.

I’m thankful to have a home, which may be one single place or multiple places.

I’m thankful to have life lessons that can help me grow.

I’m thankful to have beauty, which although I’m far from flawless, never allows me to be down on myself.

I’m thankful to have diversity, for it allows me to learn and love people no matter how different.

I’m thankful to have the opportunity to bring peace to even the worst situations.

I’m thankful to live in a world where you can travel and never see too much of it.

I’m thankful for the places I’ve been and the places I will go, morally and physically.

I’m thankful for the stress I feel, for it pushes me to get the job done.

I’m thankful for the opportunities to be a leader when I most need them.

I’m thankful that I get to appreciate the small things, for any day may be my last.

But, most importantly, I’m thankful for everything. Good, bad, scary, beautiful, harsh, wonderful. I am thankful that I get to wake up each day and make it whatever I want it to be, and I am thankful that every year my list continues to grow. Though my daily struggles may just seem like stressors, they are actually reasons to be grateful. Whether I look at them as lessons or as reasons to appreciate the next day, I am more than grateful to endure. Thanksgiving may be a single day to give thanks and appreciate these many things, but I can only hope to do a better job at appreciating these things every day. Life isn’t about the things we receive, but also the things we can give to others.