Lived through all the love and laughter of another Happy Thanksgiving, and my heart is full.

Yesterday was colored with change and transition, reminiscing on old memories and meeting new people, and lots of smiling.

This was mine and John’s first Thanksgiving as a serious couple, so we shared the Thanksgiving day with both our families. It was definitely a change for both of us, both wanting to be two places at once, but also wanting to spend it together and with the other’s family as well. What I also observed was a shift in my heart in thinking of John.

I always wondered if I would ever find a man that I would okay (and happy) with missing family traditions for. I always thought it would seem foreign to go with my significant other instead of being with family, like I would feel guilty or something. What I learned yesterday was that while I held sadness in my heart at first, I found that John, the person he is and the person he has become in my life, provided a sense of comfort and home for me. Amidst what seemed like a hard thing to do, because it was different, to miss a family tradition, I was at peace being with him. I always wondered whether I would get to this place, this kind of relationship, and here I am. Filled to the brim with gratitude and love, to God for this gift, and for John. And it’s only the beginning. 

I’m thankful for how welcoming his family was.

I’m thankful for how he braves my interesting family.

I’m thankful for delicious food.

I’m thankful for words and truth and grace. Without which, I would be shriveled up nothing.

I’m thankful for this life.