This is my favorite time of year. The months of November-January are filled with family, friends, love, GREAT food, and so much fun. I am thankful for Thanksgiving, because that is where it all starts.

Thanksgiving means a chilly Thursday morning football game bundled up next to your best friends drinking freshly made hot chocolate. It means rushing home to thaw your frozen fingers and toes by taking a steaming hot shower, and then pulling your nicest outfit out from the back of your closet (even if you never leave your house on Thanksgiving, you still want to be the nicest looking one in your kitchen).

Thanksgiving means the family tradition of stuffing celery with cream cheese to put on the table before the meal. It means trying not to get full on finger food while listening to your uncle yell at the sports game playing on the TV. It means wrestling with your brothers on the living room floor, despite how many times your mom tells you to stop.

Thanksgiving is the excitement you feel when you hear your grandpa say, “dinner’s ready!” It’s sitting together at a long table where you can see everyone who loves you. And most importantly, Thanksgiving is when you take the time to go around and each openly express what you are thankful for, without holding anything back.

I feel that too often we take the time that we have for granted to not say the things that we are feeling at that moment. And I am thankful for a day of thanks so we can express those things to the people that mean the most to us - as a reminder that even though our feelings aren’t regularly expressed, they are still there and they are still important.

In the midst of all the laughter and all the fun, remind yourself this Thanksgiving of what the holiday is truly about - giving thanks. Hug family you don’t see on a regular basis, toss a football in the yard with your siblings, tell the people that you love that

you love them - be thankful for this life that you have. Be thankful for the people that you get to share it with. Give thanks.