Thankful . . .

It's been an interesting year so far, full of ups and downs, highs and lows. I have achieved a lot, but I still have a long way to go, sort of like I just passed the marker for the first K of a 25K marathon. But, this is a week to be thankful for what I have, and not to dwell on what I still haven't managed to do yet. So, here's a short list, in no particular order:

I am thankful for my apartment. It is the first space that is mine, entirely mine. It is small, and the decor is more "cluttered mess" than "chic", but there is absolutely no one who can complain or care. I unlock the door after work and sit down, and know that the space is my sanctum sanctorum.

I am thankful for my rabbit. She mystifies me sometimes (what could have possibly freaked her out this morning at 4am?), she destroys whatever she can reach, but when I wake in the morning she is lying next to my head, waiting for her daily kiss and for breakfast.

I am thankful for my job. I grumble and gripe, but this is an age where there are so many people out there who do not even have a job to gripe about, who are starving and living on the streets. I am so grateful I can pay my bills and feed myself.

I am thankful for my loved ones. This year has been marred by periods of homesickness and attacks of the lonelies, and without those voices on the other end of my phone, reminding me that I am loved, I would have started plans to move back to Chicago by now. I miss having them physically near me, but hearing their voices is often good enough.

I am thankful to be who I am. I wear many labels: costume designer, actor, writer, singer, artist . . . but in the end, these cannot tell you who I truly am. I am 31 and I am just coming to really know myself; I don't always like what I see, but I am starting to look at myself honestly, something I could not have readily done in my twenties. I am thankful to be me: strange, unique, unusual me.

Dear readers, I hope you all have lovely plans for Thursday. Make your own lists this week, and share them around the table. We all need at least one day to remember why we are thankful.