Things I'm Grateful For

Happy Thanksgiving, dear readers! At the moment, I’m likely to be heading up to Connecticut to celebrate the holiday with family over there and I am so looking forward to stuffing myself silly with delicious food and relaxing with loved ones. But apart from the food, the day off and the shopping deals, what I love about Thanksgiving is that, to me, it always reminds me to practice an attitude of gratitude. I always treat it as a time to reflect on all the things that I’m particularly thankful for, and I thought I’d share my little list with you all today. (P.S. If you want to see similar posts, check out The Thanks U Give, hosted by Mishma & Hazel. Though I planned to do this post prior to their announcement, I decided to make this a part of their event as well!)

Now, without further ado, here are the things I’m thankful for:

Macky, my best friend through it all and the person I will spend my forever with

my family, who feel so close to me in spite of being an ocean away

my friends, who offer encouragement and inspiration and are constant lights in my life

my blog and channel, where I can stretch my creativity and share all my thoughts with friends

my travel adventures, of which I have been fortunate to have many

Orlando, specifically Disney World and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, for the magic

New York City, for being a city that inspires, challenges me and makes me feel at home

my fandoms new and old, for all the feels and the way they become a part of my every day

a growing collection of art, which makes my home feel more personal and interesting

my writing, for the challenge and the sense of accomplishment and the hope

bullet journaling, which is exactly the sort of planner that suits my needs

meeting goals, especially when it comes to my finances

desserts, but especially donuts and cookies and ice cream and macarons

my apartment, which has continued to become more and more a home and less just a place I live

food delivery, for bringing some of the yummiest comfort food into my life

mail, because I love getting things delivered to me

Additionally, I wanted to mention a couple of books (and series) that I’m extremely grateful for. I’m so thankful for books in general. They’ve always meant so, so much to me. They challenge me, teach me, encourage me, inspire me, and make me feel less alone in the world. They allow me to escape reality and live in another world, another story for the time that I am with them, and I love that. And, of course, hand in hand with that, I’m so grateful to the authors who write these stories!

I'm grateful for Matilda and A Little Princess, which were both constant companions in my childhood. For my mother's collection of fairytales from the Brothers Grimm, which became a wellspring of inspiration and has always made me want to write a fantasy novel (which I will one day). I'm extremely thankful for the Harry Potter series, a series that has inspired me and allowed me to form strong bonds with fellow Potterheads. For Throne of Glass, which inspired me to pick up a pen again after years away. For Incarnate, which introduced me to an author who is now one of my friends and inspirations. For Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, which has challenged me to take my story construction to an entirely new level. For The Shadow Queen, which has inspired me to redevelop my idea for a fairytale retelling. For the Amulet series, which has strengthened my love for graphic novels. For the Off-Campus series, for making me laugh and inspiring me to write contemporary love stories. These are but a few of the stories that I'm extremely grateful for, even though I have read and loved many, many more novels. 

I want to end this post by saying that I am very thankful for you. You, my dear readers, mean a whole lot to me, because I never imagined that so many people would want to read (or hear) what I have to say, or that you guys would enjoy my blog posts and videos as much as I enjoy creating them. I am sincerely grateful that you take the time out of your day to read a post, watch a video, like a photo, leave a comment, or tweet at me. It means the world to me. I hope you know that you're appreciated, and I hope you know that you are always welcome here.

Happy Thanksgiving, my loves!