Thankfulness: Week 1

I've decided to write a little bit about 5 things that I'm thankful for each week until the end of November...

1. Religious Beliefs: I'm thankful for my belief in a religion that brings a sense of direction and hope into my life. When using a wheelchair consistently became a part of my life it was reassuring to know that my life still had a purpose to it and that I should keep trying because my life isn't meant to be hopeless or pointless as it might seem at times.

2. Family: I'm very thankful for my family. I appreciate my dad and the opportunities I had growing up to see how much effort he put into his job. I don't think that my dad had the most glamorous job in the world, although I thought he did when I was younger, but he always took a lot of pride in doing his job to the best of his abilities which set a good example for me to follow and I certainly have learned a lot from him.

I appreciate my stepmom Becky and the active interest that she's taken in my life. I'm grateful that she's made an effort to get to know me and that I'm comfortable with talking to her about anything that I have going on in my life. It seems like whenever I'm having a bad day she always finds some way to make me smile or brightens my day somehow. She's a kindhearted, caring, and thoughtful person who I'm very thankful to have in my life.

I'm also very thankful for Sheila and the wonderful person that she is. Having a younger sister, who looks up to me, has always motivated me to try to be a better person or to set a good example for her if I can. Sheila's always been more than willing to help me with whatever I've needed her to and I really couldn't have asked for better sister, and friend, than she's been to me.

3. Friends: I feel very blessed to have the friends that I do. I'm thankful to have true friends who've always gone out of their way to encourage me when I struggle rather than only being my "friend" when things are going well for me or if it's convenient for them.

One of the highlights of my life has been being able to have a high level of mutual respect with the incredible people that I consider as my friends. I'm thankful that my friends have allowed me to look at life from different perspectives and that they've brought so much joy into my life for several years now.

4. Health: I appreciate being more healthy these days which has given me the ability to travel and enjoy life more than I was able to while I was recovering from the surgery that I had a few years ago.

5. Education: I'm thankful for the opportunity I've had to continue my education and to become a more well-rounded person by doing that. One of my goals growing up was to earn a degree from a university and I'm thankful to only be 16 credits away from that goal becoming a reality for me. I appreciate the support of my family as I've taken Criminal Justice classes in pursuit of a degree.