Grateful.

Things that, in the past, seemed impossible are happening in my life right now.

I can't help but look at the things coming to pass as miracles in my life. I am so blessed, and I am so grateful for everything that the Lord has helped me to work for. I'm so grateful for the strong relationships that I've been able to create with my family, and my friends. 

I think there's just something about November that makes us all realize how truly lucky we are. A couple of weeks ago in nutrition we were talking about third world countries where 18-month-old babies live on the street and fend for themselves because their mother passed away from AIDS or some other terrible disease, or even in giving birth to them. My heart aches for people in situations such as this, and I cannot help but feel selfish for complaining, and worrying about the petty things that I feel are challenges in my life.

 Although I can't help but feel that my problems are so miniscule, and that others are so worse off than me because I truly am the luckiest girl in the world. I do know that the Lord cares about every single person's problems, and even more importantly he cares about our individual feelings. This has been such a comfort in my life, especially in the past few weeks.

 Lately (more like my whole life) I've been so stressed out about getting into the classes that I want and getting my Associates, and getting into my impossible-seeming program. I know that the Lord cares about my education because I care about my education and I'm so grateful for that knowledge.

Every time that something goes wrong in my life the Lord also presents me with a new, amazing opportunity. Most of the time it's something that I've never even thought about before. I'm such a spontaneous person, so I totally understand why these opportunities are so off-the-wall. Haha. But either way, planned or not planned, I'm grateful for all of the opportunities that the Lord has blessed me with, and I'm grateful that he's helped me work hard to achieve everything that I've wanted to achieve up to this point.

I'm so eternally grateful for the parents that I was given. My dad is my literal hero. He is a walking encyclopedia of both secular, and spiritual knowledge. My family always jokes that because my dad never had a son, he had to do his best to work with me. I don't even care though! I'm grateful that he teaches me everything that he knows. I cannot wait for the day that something goes wrong with my car, and I don't have to call my dad to help me fix it. I want to learn all that I can from him so that I can pass on that knowledge to my children. My dad is the ultimate man, and I know that I'll marry someone who is just like him. 

I'm grateful for my mom too! She's always willing to help out, and she loves to try new things with me. She always pushes me to do my best and I would not be the organization-freak that I am today without her influence on my life. 

I'm super grateful for my friends. Even though I feel like I spend practically no time with them, they are the hugest blessing in my life. I'm so lucky to have friends who uplift me, and are great examples. I hope that one day I can be as great of an example to them as they are to me, because they are stellar. 

Strange as it may sound, I'm so, so thankful for the Word of Wisdom. I've literally tried to talk myself into bearing my testimony about it like the past two times in sacrament meeting, but I haven't been able to work up the courage. I'm so passionate about the Word of Wisdom, and I can testify to you that it's true doctrine from God. Because I've been learning about the body, and how things work, and what things do, I've gained so much knowledge about how harmful things such as alcohol, drugs, caffeine, and a non-nutrient-dense diet are to your body. One of my close, close friends just passed away from cirrhosis of the liver because of over-consumption of alcohol.

Putting the loss of my loved one aside, the Word of Wisdom is completely necessary for a healthy, happy, spiritually sound life. There are so many fragile things in the body, and it's amazing that humans can live as long as we can. When you think about it, there are people born with aneurisms that live into their 70's! Our bodies are fragile enough without adding on the stress of harmful substances. I'm so grateful for the Word of Wisdom, and I'm grateful that I have such a willingness to say no when I'm offered or tempted with alcohol and other damaging things. And trust me I have been.

I'm grateful to know that I'm never alone. I've felt super lonely lately... I drive alone, I cook alone, and I think that I talk to people in maybe 3 out of my 7 classes. I hardly ever see my family, and It's a rare, weekend-only occasion when I see my friends. I'm grateful for the knowledge though that I'm never alone in anything, and company is just a knee away.

I could literally go on and on about the things that I'm grateful for, but the bottom line is that I'm lucky. I'm lucky to have such an amazing life, and I have nothing to complain about. Life is good, and I can't wait for my next adventure whatever it may be.

P.S. Everything happens for a reason, and the Lord won't leave you hanging. Promise.