thanksgiving

Freshman year, I am thankful for you. 

I am thankful for a God who provides hope and who preforms miracles and provides blessings daily. I am thankful for getting to sit front row for every home football game. I am thankful for Kappa Kappa Gamma teaching me how to be myself and how to be vulnerable. I am thankful for the fact I’m forever done with dining hall food. I am thankful for Netflix and its ability to transplant me to another world on days I just need a break from everything. I am thankful for homemade Rice Krispie Treats & Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. I am thankful for the new restaurants that have developed in Waco-and the local gems I have found. I am thankful for the hospitality and family orientated atmosphere Waco offers. I am thankful that my dad hasn't broken his promise-we’ve never gone over five weeks without seeing each other. I am thankful for how my sweet Sadie greets me every time I get home with plentiful kisses and love and snuggles. I am thankful for how decorating made my 10 x 10 dorm room feel like home. I am thankful for ESPN and sports, who keep me company when studying alone. I am thankful for gifts of love delivered at just the right time. I am thankful the ability to live in a college dorm, something I thought I may never be able to experience. I am thankful for technology and it’s ability to keep me in touch with those who matter most to me. I am thankful for timely phone calls and texts of wisdom when encouragement is needed most. I am thankful for coloring books that calm me down and pillows to scream into. I am thankful for the college experience and the further appreciation it has given me for higher education, as well as the incredible home I was raised in. I am thankful for the dozens of pictures on my walls that remind me of where I come from, all the good memories of my past and all the people in my life I have cheering me on. I am thankful for the new appreciation college has given me for sleep and how it has fine tuned my time management skills. I am thankful for how Baylor has made me learn and study in new ways. I am thankful for people who remind me I’m beautiful, especially as I struggle this year with weight gain, self esteem and self concept. I am thankful for a God who loves me and calls me His daughter-regardless of my GPA. I am thankful for the hours of sleep when I desperately needed them and parents who have supported me in every capacity they’re able to. I am thankful for friends who have stayed loyal and true, throughout my trials. I am thankful that His mercies are new every morning. I am thankful that my medical condition has shaped me to be ever more thankful for the little things. I am thankful for people who keep me in check.  I am thankful for the multiple opportunities I have been provided that have furthered my interest in ministry. 

I am thankful that my health allowed me to do what many said was impossible. I am thankful for the world’s greatest parents who show me daily what Christ like love looks like. I am thankful for accommodating and wonderful doctors. I am thankful for modern medicine. I am thankful for prayers that got me through on days I didn’t think I could go on any longer. I am thankful for Kappa Kappa Gamma and the wisdom I have gained from this experience. I am thankful for a Lord who loves me at my darkest. I am thankful for people I don’t even know who have made my dream of going away to college possible. I am thankful for a year of gaining knowledge. I am thankful for being stretched academically in ways I’ve never been before. I am thankful for sorority sisters who I can always rely on to make me laugh. I am thankful for the sacrifices my family has made so I can attend Baylor. I am thankful for understanding and caring professors. I am thankful for the new experiences, cultures and ideas going to a University has exposed me to by giving me a new perspective on a variety of topics. I am thankful for the memory of Kaylee Carew and how her legacy inspires me daily. I am thankful for the city of Waco, that which I have become quite fond of. I am thankful for parents and doctors who have never crushed or doubted my wildest dreams, but rather encouraged and supported me along the way. I am thankful for friendships, both old and new, that have provided laughter, happiness and the reminder that I’m never alone. I am thankful for the abundance of new things that college has allowed me to experience. I am thankful for the way He has revealed to me the weaknesses in my faith this year and has used them to humble me. I am thankful for a major that has allowed me to take classes in a field I’ve been passionate about since I was seven years old. I am thankful for times of thanksgiving that remind me of how far I’ve come but also for a God who keeps me grounded and humble-I’ve got a long ways to go. I am thankful for His provision in decision making. I am thankful for Baylor University-the incredible academic institution it is and for their commitment for the students to grow in every aspect of life. I am thankful that I have a God who is bigger than my chronic depression and greater than my anxiety. I am thankful for the opportunities that have forced me to be independent and problem solve. I am thankful for the many hours of loneliness and weakness, in which He has grown me the most-He truly does make beauty from the ashes. I am thankful for mentors that have sustained me with encouragement. I am thankful for signs from the Lord on days where I doubted my decision to embark on this crazy journey. I am thankful for God continually showing me that while following His plan may never be easy, I can rest assured in that His plan is far better than anything I could ever imagine.

Freshman year, I am thankful for you. Jesus, I am thankful for you.

"You are joy, You are joy, You're the reason that I sing"