Thankful

After this Thanksgiving Break, it's only right that I look back and appreciate life a little bit. I have been blessed beyond words, and I will never be able to express how grateful I am. Allow me to try and fall short:

I am thankful, above all, for Jesus. I will forever sing His praises, and I endlessly look forward to the day when I can pass through the veil and thank Him for His sacrifice. I don't know if I will even be able to stand in the presence of His all-consuming Glory. All I know is that I ache for it. He is everything. When life is hard, it is well, and He is forever good. In turn, I am forever grateful.

I am thankful for my family. They will always open their arms and welcome me home, and I will always run to them. I could not have asked for anyone better than the Gerbers and the Kipfers. You don't choose your family. But if I could choose, they would be it. They are it. We're not perfect; life gets messy a lot more than we care to admit, and still we choose love. I hope we never stop.

I am (of course) thankful for my friends. I don't know where I'd be without my girls, and they have impacted me in ways they will never know. Being able to see a few of them over break was so good for my soul. I cannot explain how wonderful it is to have women in my life who are grounded in Christ and invested in me. Whether it's a skype date, or a McDonald's date, or a movie date - it doesn't matter; they are forever giving me joy. I only hope I can do the same for them in return.

Yes, those three are the typical, cliché "I'm thankful for" answers. But they are truth.

More importantly, though, I'm so thankful for the little things. I've thought up a few (but definitely not all) of them here:
-The way I can feel at home no matter where I go, so long as my family or friends are there

-The way any word or phrase can turn into an opera performance by my aunt Jaila

-The way the living room is a stage for my cousin Emily's tumbling routine

-The way my Grandpa Neil shamelessly cheats at spoons with my cousin Joe

-The way my grandmas literally never sit down for the Thanksgiving meal until they are sure that they have served everyone else

-The way each of my families all fit around one table at our respective gatherings

-The way my cousins [[Bre and Jayla]] and my little sister forever keep me laughing in our group text

-The way my Grandpa Ken's face lights up when he sees one of his grandkids

-The way my aunt Gwen can get the whole room laughing by simply laughing herself

-The way my Kipfer cousins try to mimic me whenever I do my classic "chinz" face

-The way the sound of laughter from the four Kipfer grandkids under the age of 8 always rings throughout the entire house

-The way my "baby" cousins lock their little arms around my neck and refuse to let go, wordlessly reminding me that their love is unconditional and steadfast

-The way I still fit perfectly into my dad's arms, even though I'm 19 years old

-The way my mom hugs me a little tighter and a little longer now that she doesn't get to do it every day

-The way my sister and I can appreciate each other's especially ugly selfies

-The way my dad knows exactly how to make me laugh until my stomach hurts

-The way my mom makes sure all my favorite foods are in stock whenever I come home 

-The way I can go weeks without seeing my best friends and still slip effortlessly into love and laughter with them every time we reunite

-The way those same best friends forever know how to make me smile--through random texts and funny pictures and long hugs [[when we're together]]
-The way I am always so, so loved

I live in a world of excess [[click here to see my thoughts on that]], but that will never mean that I do not recognize my blessings. And it will never mean that I have stopped being thankful for them. It's true, words will never be enough. But since I'm a "words" person, I will always try.

I am thankful [[as Jen Hatmaker so wisely stated]] for the thousands of good days behind me, and the even better days ahead.

Happy Thanksgiving, all.