Verbalization of Gratitude

“You must remember, family is often born of blood, but it doesn't depend on blood. Nor is it exclusive of friendship. Family members can be your best friends, you know. And best friends, whether or not they are related to you, can be your family.”
-Trenton Lee Stewart-

Family. Everyone is born into one, that is one thing that we call can agree upon. What we can’t agree upon or really measure is the amount of love in each family. It’s a strange phenomenon; it encompasses our everyday existence, but is so apparent, it’s almost transparent. Everyone’s heard the saying, “you can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family,” but I think you do choose your family. You chose you’re family when you make that decision to stay close to them despite the distance, or resolve past conflicts in order to keep that bond. Life is all about choices, and learning from those choices.  What I love most about this topic above any other is the genuine factor is has on people. Maybe it’s just me, but opening up about “intangibles” force me to deeply think about what it really means to be human or just be. I focus on each sentence, each word to ensure the meaning reaches its intended purpose. I guess the reason behind it is a simple one: I don’t take the time I should to express how I feel about the people that truly mean the world to me.

It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, and it’s hard to just breathe let alone appreciate things/people. That sounds so backwards to me; we’ve create our own daily messes. We’ve become such complex creatures and in doing so, have degraded our primal purposes to love, and be loved.  Now that I am away, (like really really away) not just Ohio or Indiana, I find it even more apparent how friends and family help mold us. Its funny how distance tends to heighten your awareness; it helps you discover what it means to be a good person, friend, sister, and daughter. Don’t get me wrong, when I’m home I miss and appreciate people, but distance throws a metaphorical wrench into things; it makes you stop dead in your tracks, take a deep breath and smile. If I had to think of two words to describe it I guess it would be pure thankfulness. It’s a strange thought, but the more special or rare something is, the more people take it for granted. You hear it over and over again: family and friends don’t last forever, make sure you make the time count! It’s not until you stop hearing the words and actually feel what is being said, that you’ll really understand its meaning.  

 

“You have it easily in your power to increase the sum total of this world's happiness now. How? By giving a few words of sincere appreciation to someone who is lonely or discouraged. Perhaps you will forget tomorrow the kind words you say today, but the recipient may cherish them over a lifetime.”

Dale Carnegie (1888-1955)
Motivational Author

I’ve always heard people say, “I have to call my mom today or..blah blah,” or “ugh, it’s that time to get together with so and so this week…” where it’s more of an obligation or burden. I think through my nomadic life so far, I’ve come to realize those who mean the most to me (hopefully vice versa) always find a way to stay in touch. So here are just a few shout outs:

To my Girlfriends from college- We might all go our different ways, but always ALWAYS make it back to each other and I love and cherish that.

To Kaitlin- I’ve known you since middle school, and when I say absolutely nothing has changed, I mean it. I’m so lucky to have such a longtime friend that will do anything for me and can talk about anything and EVERYTHING with me. Miss you more than words can show.

To Karoline- I’ve known you forever as well, but it still feels like yesterday when we first met. I can’t really say I miss talking to you or seeing you because we see each other almost every day on Skype! I’m so thankful that you take the time out of your looney tuney days to catch up and just say hi. You are my rock. 

To my Family- It takes a lot to put up with me, I’ll be the first to admit it. From relationship drama, to daily career change ideas, I always want to mix things up. You’re all there to watch me grow through the good AND the bad times. I love the constant love and encouragement you’ve given me from the very beginning; without it I don’t know if I would have taken half the risks that I have. I saw this quote a little while ago and think it completely applies, “Encouragement is the oxygen of the soul.” I think that everyone has a story to tell, and they need a strong support system to make that story come to life. I will never really be able to repay you all for the strength you’ve given me, I just hope you know how appreciative I am to be a part of such a family.

To everyone else (who really wants to read a blog this long anyway?)- People impact people no matter how long they’ve known them. Whether I’ve known you a minute or years, everyone has in one way or another made me who I am today. Knowing and realizing that is humbling.

SO to sum things up: I love people. Haha no, but really. I just wanted to write one little (okay not so little) blog about how the people in my life really are amazing. I think it’s important to verbally (or in this case blogally?) say it more often even though it’s a struggle to do. It’s hard to be vulnerable, let alone manifest the “right” words to express how you feel AND give it justice. Sometimes you just have to think that the hard things in life are the ones that will shape you into a better you. This probably was not the most eloquent of blogs (in fact I’m positive it wasn’t), but it put somewhat of a dent in my verbalization of gratitude toward the people whom I love the most.