Having always been one to look deeper into the people, places, and situations around me, I have always found myself being moved by a wide variety of seemingly simple occurrences. From the small voice of a child talking excitedly to her mother about a new toy or book she read in class while walking down the street, to the looks of pure joy on the faces of people who have so little, and yet give so much, I often find myself smiling at the little things in life, things that others may not even take note of. Call me crazy or just call me sentimental, but I have often thought that the people and things in this world can be so beautiful if we allow these small moments to shine.

I find that it is all too simple for me to get caught up in the slightly unpleasant little things in life, the little struggles such as a suite bathroom that decides for itself when it wants to work right, or making a good grade on an exam but getting upset that it wasn't quite good enough. I often let these incidents that don't quite sit well with me consume me, though there are so many people that deal with situations far worse than grades and slightly imperfect living conditions on a daily basis. We live in a world full of beauty, but we also live in a world plagued by violence, poverty, and destruction, and I too often take for granted just how much I have been blessed to live the life that I do, been blessed with the opportunity to experience so many beautiful little things this world contains.

On that note, this thanksgiving I propose a change in perception of the way many of us see this idea of being thankful. This holiday is a time to give thanks for all of the many things the Lord has blessed us with: family, friends, good health, and life in general, but we've also been blessed with something else that we might not think about. We've been blessed with the little things, and this thanksgiving I think it's time to give some thanks to those little things in life, not the bad ones that sometimes consume our thoughts, but the good ones, the beautiful ones.

My heart skip a beat when I see a random act of kindness, my eyes sometimes swell up with tears when I take a deeper look at the beauty of nature and my surrounding, and when I hold a newborn baby, I am moved in a way that I feel as though words cannot do justice, and I'd like to think this sort of feeling isn't only felt by me. We all experience these beautiful moments, these peaceful and joyful things that life has to offer.

So this holiday season, I won't take those for granted. I'll be thankful for everything the Lord has given me, a loving family and caring friends, but I'll also be thankful for the little things that he has provided me with as well. I'll be thankful for being able to make food with my parents on thanksgiving morning, watch the Thanksgiving Day parade with my sister, and sip hot chocolate and decorate a Christmas tree at the end of the day. I hope we can all be thankful for the sense of warmth and peace that overtakes the atmosphere this time of year, but most importantly, I hope we can be thankful for the beautiful moments life has to offer us, these beautiful little things.