What is there to be thankful for?

If you are any kind of introspective or thinking person, you are thankful for so many things on this Thanksgiving day. Of course, you list among them family, friends and good health. As I get older I realize that everyone is blessed in some kind of way whether we choose to see it and believe it or not. On this Thanksgiving, I realize there are things beyond the usual I am thankful for; however snarky they may seem, I think it is important to move beyond the usual. This is in no way intended to be negative:

1- I am thankful for really truly assy people in the world. Every time I interact with one of these assy people, I think to myself, "thank you, I now know how not to act." This pearl of wisdom came down to me from Peter, an older man who I worked with at Borders when I was finishing my master's degree and was unbelievably broke. We had an absolutely horrible customer one morning and Peter said to me, "Laura, don't get upset. Use this as an opportunity to learn what it means to act like a human." I will never forget those words, Peter. I am eternally thankful for that opportunity and Peter's wisdom.

2- I am thankful for a really bad teacher/adviser I once had. Again, this was an opportunity to learn what it means to be a human in this world and the importance of teaching and guiding people through education. I have always taken my education seriously and have desperately tried to be a good mentor to others, but I didn't truly understand the importance until I met perhaps the assiest man in the world and his horrible hag of a wife. The horrors that ensued from our acquaintance will not be recounted. Needless to say, these awful individuals taught me how lucky I am to have other people in my life who would never behave as they did. They taught me the importance of treating people well and appreciating their hard work. They taught me the necessity for good scholarship and giving credit where credit was due. They taught me the lesson of moving on when it was time (something some people never learn). Perhaps most importantly, they taught me patience; individuals who lack patience are ugly humans, and they showed me some of the worst ugliness I have ever had the misfortune to see in real life. To the assiest man in the world and his horrible hag of a wife, I say thank you on this Thanksgiving day. Thank you for showing me the importance of being a beautiful human.

3- I am thankful for those bad experiences that made me think and grow. I can remember being a kid and asking my father how to do things and him saying, "figure it out." I hated when he said this to me. I can remember my cranky-child self becoming overwhelmed and angry and just wanting someone to do what I needed done. But, I can also remember that same cranky child self taking a deep breath and working through the problem. Since those days, I have encountered countless problems that I could have huffed at and turned away from but instead, I heard my father's voice, and I calmly figured it out. Thank you Dad for being so frustrating when I was a child; Thank you for teaching me what it means to use my brain and "figure it out."

While this is a short list, it is an important one. Did you ever sit back and think to yourself, what does it mean to be a good and beautiful human? What is the value in not giving up? How are these things intertwined? I think about this often, and most importantly, I think of these things on days other than Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! Make it one that has worth for the person you aspire to be!