It's easy as 1-2-3

Lately, I've been thinking about some certain things and how deeply grateful I am for them. I'm going to share them with you because I think it is good to sometimes share the things we're grateful for with others.

I am extremely grateful for:

1.) Structure. Life, especially when one is somewhere in-between having left home after high school and starting there own home and family, is crazy. I don't know what I'll be doing after Russia, or even all the things I'll be doing there. I didn't know for sure that I was going to Russia until a few months ago. I don't have to be going to Russia; I could be going to school, or getting ready to spend three months hitch-hiking all over America and living out of a backpack, or I could just live in the park downtown as a bum if I really wanted to. See what I mean? At this age, you very rarely know what your next step is going to be and you get to be the one who determines it- not your parents or your own children. Many of us are in this boat right now.

I am grateful for structure because it gives order to the chaos of my life. I may not know where I will be or what I will be doing in six months, but I do know small things, like how church lasts for three hours and is always on Sunday. It is those little pieces of structure that help to keep me sane and productive and, therefore, happy. I don't have very much structure to my days right now, but I will be excited to have some established after getting to Russia.

2.) I ran across an old box of letters in my room the other day. As I read through some of them, I happened upon a bit of wisdom that a very dear friend shared with me years ago in a letter. She said that "not all relationships have to follow the same pre-conceived notion of normality." I frequently forget that, even though I have come to take it as a truth over the years.

I am so grateful that our relationships with people do not all have to be the same; I would probably go crazy and be incapable of any sorts of relationships with anyone if they did have to all be the same. They don't, though. Some people I communicate better with face-to-face. Some people I communicate best with in writing. Other people I could spend hours to talking with on the phone. Some friends I see everyday. Some friends I see once a year, if that. I am unique and everyone I meet is unique. Therefore, how we work or blend together and how we communicate or spend time together is unique and does not always follow what society tells us is normal or acceptable. And that is okay... Society is wrong about lots of things.

3.) I am a deeply flawed individual. I am not perfect now and I was not a perfect teenager- I argued with my parents, fell asleep during class, sometimes got in trouble for talking too much in class, and made some choices that were not the best and that I regret. However, I think that overall I was a good kid and made some very good decisions that I am grateful for making.

I am grateful for the decision I made that I would not do anything that would put me at risk of becoming a mom by the age of seventeen. I am grateful that I made the decision to never put judgment-impairing or mind-altering substances into my body. I am grateful for the incredible friends I chose to surround myself with.I am grateful for the decision I made to go to Seminary everyday except the ones that I was extremely ill on. I am grateful for my decision to work hard at school and try to learn as much as I could, even though I was constantly exhausted and frequently had trouble focusing. I am grateful for the decision I made to just do my best and to not make myself sick by stressing over every single grade. I am grateful that I decided to never cheat on a test. I am grateful for the good choices I made then because they have lead to an even better future.
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What are you grateful for today?