And I give thanks for:

1. Life; that I was given a chance to live and that I still am being blessed with life to this moment. 

2. Love; that I am blessed with friends and family that love me more than I will ever know.

3. Being born in America. Lately, I've heard plenty about how we as a nation are destroying America and all it has ever stood for . . . but I am so thankful that I was given this life in this country, free and happy.

4. Opportunities; that I have been given the chance to finish high school and attend college (complain as I may about it . . . ), that I was able to get a job when I turned 16 years old, still have that job today, and even work a second job during the summer. And, may I add, I job that I love!

5. Compassion. This may seem like an odd thing to be thankful for, but I truly am. I've heard people talk about having to work to become compassionate towards people. God has blessed me with a sense of compassion that is almost second-nature (though it is difficult at times - I am no saint). 

6. Freedom. Isn't that what this blog is all about? Freedom from captors, from circumstance, from addiction . . . I am thankful for my freedom.


   Though I know that this is a few days late, the past few days I have been thinking a lot about my life and how much it differs from others. 

   My life is a blessing in and of itself, and I think that's worthy of my recognition. I want to (and need to) understand how blessed I am and the best way I could think of to do that was to list what I am thankful for, especially those things that weigh heavy on my mind: life, love, opportunity, circumstance, and freedom. 

   These are the things that separate me from those that I long to help. If any one of these things had been compromised during my life, I could have been any of those people that I live to love.  

   I could have been aborted as an unborn baby had I not been given the chance to live. I could have been an orphan or ward of the state had I not been blessed with the love and circumstances I've been given. I could have been a prostitute surviving on drugs, believing there's no other way for me to support myself, had I not been blessed with freedom and opportunity. 

   I could have been in so many different situations, yet God blessed me abundantly. And for that, I am thankful beyond words.