Gobble, Gobble

So its Thanksgiving Day - well, technically its the day after Thanksgiving. This year was a different one for me... I didn't spend it with my family at all, but instead enjoyed the hospitality of some family friends. Its so weird... kinda makes you feel guilty for intruding on what tradition dictates as a "family holiday." But nevertheless, I am extremely thankful that they thought enough of me to invite me into their home and share their Thanksgiving with me.
For me, family has always been my mom. Sure, I had other family members, but she was the one constant, the one that I always thought of first. So on this third Thanksgiving without her, I have to take a minute and think of some other things for which I am thankful. I am thankful for my life - the life that was given to me by two faceless, nameless people, but more importantly the life that was created for me by my REAL MOTHER. I am thankful for love - the love that she shared with me for so many years and the love that I continue to be able to share with others because of her example. I am thankful for success - the example of hers and the continuing evolution of my own. I am thankful for failure - mommy always said that it built character, and she was right. But beyond that, it showed me that there would be better times in the future. I am thankful for my friends, both old and new. Friendship is essential to the soul, and the relationships that I have built have sustained my soul and shaped my life. And finally, I am thankful for things yet to come. Lately I've been expanding my horizons and trying to step outside of the stuffy, 28-year-old bore I was becoming. So thank you to the person who has shown (and continues to show) me that life can be about more than traditional relationships and conventional boundaries... your hype man was right, and I couldn't be more thankful!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!