Thanksgiving is about so much more than food and football; it's a time for appreciation, for counting our blessings, and for celebrating our lives. This November, I suggest we all take the time to create a "Six Things I'm Thankful For List," as I did. Here's how mine turned out:
1. I am so thankful for friends.
As the old Girl Scout song that I sometimes hum for reasons unknown to me choruses, “Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver, the other is gold. A circle is round, it has no end; that’s how long I want to be friends.”
Alright, while I might have gotten the words wrong - and I’m sure I did; it’s been a long time since I was a Brownie - the same sentiment remains: I am using this anecdote to express the newfound gratitude I feel for the people I have met since starting at Emerson College in August as well as the enduring appreciation I have for the friends back home in Hingham.
I am thankful for the five best friends I’ve had since I was a sophomore, whose houses became second homes and who have forever impacted me. These are people I could spend hours with doing nothing, and having the best time doing so. To all of the drives down Jerusalem, the late nights we spent talking about life and death and all in between, the chats about the problems in our lives that we believed might mark the end the world (but never came close), the endless quoting of Vines, and the nights on a boat.
And, in the spirit of disclosure, I am thankful for the Thanksgiving tradition four of these people and I maintain: we gather at the nearest McDonald’s and create a masterpiece “frile”, which is the term we coined to describe the pile of eight large French fries we consume whenever the fourth week of November approaches. I am so looking forward to this over break.
As the Drama Club of Hingham High School knows, I am so fond of them. You all know how I feel about this group of people: I published an entire article just two weeks ago thanking them for their friendship and all the memories I made backstage with them! I want to reiterate the love I feel for these people: through each after school rehearsal and costume fitting and session of cast bonding, I have loved spending them with these wonderful, weird individuals. From the performances on-stage and the characters off, I have made such great memories and I was fortunate enough to develop some lifelong friendships.
To the friends I’ve made since starting at Emerson College in August, I am so glad I found people to experience this time of great transition with. I have met some of the most kind-hearted, open-minded, accepting, wonderful, creative, and passionate people here at Emerson; this school is home to artists and leaders and people who can and will change the world (and also a lot of super cool, fun people).
2. I am so thankful for the the girls I live with.
When I tell people I have five suite mates, I often get looks of great concern or an offering of condolences, like I’ve just announced something terrible. Most of the time, these glances are followed with the person leaning in to ask, in a hushed tone, “Oh. Five? Jeez. How is that?”
The answer is, it’s kind of great. I’ll be honest, we don’t all agree all of the time - we have frequent conversations about cleanliness and the completion of chores - but we do get along. These girls have helped me create a home here at Emerson, and I love them for that.
Prior to this, I never had a roommate. I had no brothers or sisters, just a lot of cousins. I had never shared a living space with someone besides a parent, so the whole notion of “roommates” was uncharted.
The experiences I’ve had living with these five wonderful girls have been wonderful. I am so thankful for these women; these were the first friends I made at Emerson, the people I eat meals with, the people I come back to at the end of each night.
I am thankful for their strong personalities, their kindness, their love for one another, their respect for our suite, their insight to whatever question I come to them with, their senses of humor, their wit and banter, and their wardrobes.
3. I am so thankful for the relatives who have kept in touch with me throughout high school and college endeavors.
Let’s be honest, in big families, it’s hard to keep track of one another. However, I am thankful for those relatives who have done their best to maintain a relationship despite how hectic their schedules might be. I am also thankful to the relatives I reconnected with after going to college, to those who reached out to me with their numbers or the prospect of getting lunch together in Boston.
In a special shout out, I am thankful for the woman who has supported me wherever life has brought me, who transports boxes of food and toiletries via the Red Line from Braintree into Park Street for the dorm, and who writes me letters on cards decorated with hummingbirds or elephants or, in the spirit of October, pumpkins. She is the strongest woman I know and one of the smartest. Her recent Halloween photos depicting her dressed as a witch terrified me (and half of the girls in the suite). Mom, thanks so much.
4. I am thankful for the sisters of Xi Gamma Nu.
I’ve gushed about them before in this article, and I will gush again: the sisters I’ve met through Xi Gamma Nu are some of the most wonderful women I have ever had the privilege of knowing. I am so thankful for their sisterhood, their unconditional love, and their support, just as I am thankful to the chance to get to know them better as our time together continues.
5. I am thankful that I haven't lost another student I.D.
But $25 later, here I am. Second time's the charm, right?
6. I am not thankful for the food at the Dining Hall.
Guess this isn’t something I’m thankful for… However, I will be thankful for the home cooked meals I will be devouring over Thanksgiving Break!
7. I am thankful Owen Wilson isn't dead!
I was confused about this for a while and had been mislead to believe the "Night at the Museum" actor had passed, but the good news is, I have received clarification that Owen Wilson is, in fact, not deceased. Thank goodness; he's a national treasure.
8. I am thankful that all the pictures of me in middle school have been removed from Facebook.
Except that one. That's a gem. Thanks, mom, for keeping this one up on Facebook.
9. I am thankful the presidential election is almost over.
Not long now!
10. I am thankful to have so much to be thankful for.
I am so fortunate and so privileged to have experienced the friendships, romances, travels, education, and opportunities I have. Consider this article as the beginning of a celebration of appreciation this Thanksgiving!
