appreciate

fellow bloggies-

I come late in the game to this, but, from now until the end of December I will be participating in Reverb 10. It is a chance to reflect on this past year and figure out where we are going. Check it out at www.reverb10.com

Today's Prompt: December 14: Appreciate. What have you come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it?

As cheesy as it may sound, this past year I have come to appreciate my connections with others, whether it be my amazing parents, nutty sister, loving boyfriend, my carefree house mates, or my driven teammates. Connections make my world, and this year I would be nowhere without any of this important people. I have learned to never underestimate the power of love and to appreciate the glow it brings us all in it's own way each and every day.

Connections are not tangible but they are the most important fabric of our world. I appreciate the comfort I get from picking up the phone and calling my mom simply because I miss her and need her advice. I appreciate my sister's new-found spirit and sense of self, how she combines her new San Fran lifestyle with the VT homebody she will always be. I appreciate the ability of my tall, goofy, redheaded boy to cheer me up with one look, crack me up with one word. I appreciate his attentive ear and love of the bear hug. I appreciate my roommates dealing with me at my worst, the numerous nights spent unproductively in the living room, discussing how we should be doing work. I appreciate each of them for who they are. I love our late nights and early mornings, the bagels that are ALWAYS in the fridge, our open closet policy, our random texts. I appreciate my narrative professor's ability to make me see through the words on the page into their deeper meaning, that little extra push that feels like a huge horse kick at the time but totally pays off. I appreciation his appreciation of my "art." I appreciate the connections with my 'tennis girls,' the every-lasting love that only a two teammates can feel, the girls who push me to sprint faster, work hard, lift one more rep. I appreciate my long-lost abroad friends, the ones who introduced me to British life and made me feel more than I ever have in my entire life.

Most of all, I am learning how to appreciate what I am to all of the important people in my life. I see now that the only why I can express my pure, unrelenting gratitude to them is to give everything they have given me back to them, and more. I want to make them get the same joy out of me that I get out of them. I want to individually thank them for each moment that I will never forget. I spent 2010 working on who I am, and I am planning on spending 2011 helping the ones I love to figure out who they are.

I appreciate love, yes, but mostly I appreciate the grounding and stability it gives me. I am truly lucky to have this many amazing people in my life, it is uncommon to have more than one truly great friend. For everybody who needs an extra ear to listen, shoulder to cry on, laugh to laugh with, I will try my best to be there for you. The one way I can express my appreciation is by saying thank you, but I cannot say it enough.

Enjoy that loving feeling.