gratitude.

I spontaneously created a brief facebook status about just a few things I felt appreciative of today. It made me realize I hadn't really made a gratitude list in a while so I've decided to elaborate and expand.

A) new york roomie: A friend of a friend contacted me a few days ago when she heard I was moving to NYC in January and told me she was looking for a roommate for right around the same time. She too is going to Columbia and would be looking for apartments in the same area with the same price range as me. We have met multiple times and have always gotten along fabulously and I am so grateful that I don't have to worry about my living situation before I make the big move. She is already in the city and will be able to find us a place and I know we will enjoy living together. I am so grateful that I don't have to spend the next four months trying to find a place from 3,000 miles away and that Raina is someone I am absolutely excited to live with. I don't know what it is but things always seem to work out in the end.

B) keeping in touch: Emily and I talked yesterday for almost an hour and when our conversation got cut short due to her phone dying, we realized we still had so much more to talk about. She is calling me later today so we can continue to catch up. There is no better feeling in the world than living miles and miles away from an good friend and knowing that it is important to the both of you to keep contact with each other. On the contrary though, I also have so many friends who I really don't keep in touch with at all yet when we see each other, it is as if we were never separated. I am grateful for both types of friendships for they are equally important and force you to feel grateful in different ways.

C) sage sylvia: If it wasn't for the advice and support of my mother, I don't know how I would keep my sanity. I find it amazing that I can be there for my friends and do my best to give sound advice, but at the end of the day, I have someone like my mom to go to for the deepest of struggles. Her beliefs in the Buddhist principles, her experiences in growing up without having parents to depend on, and just her innate wisdom and enlightenment have been a guiding force in so many, if not all, of the huge decisions I've had to make over the years. I have been stressing out about finances and New York City but she has helped to remind me to keep calm, live in the present as much as possible, be headstrong, and find a way to make it work.

D) the weather: One of the greatest things about Burlington was that the cold, harsh winters made you appreciate the blossoming spring, and the hot, sticky summers made you appreciate the brisk and beautiful autumn. We don't have that sort of seasonal appreciation in Marin, which I realize now, but I can't help but be so grateful for the almost 100% success rate of sunny weather above 75 degrees this entire summer. The sunny weather affects my mood, my motivation, my frequency of the outdoors, and so much more. Marin is such a beautiful and magical place and I feel grateful to be able to live here.

E) a scramble of yogurt, honey bunches of oats, & bananas: My newest breakfast, and it's magically delicious!

F) books: I don't read nearly as much as I wish I did, but I do love books and everything about them. I love taking and giving recommendations, I love coming across a book that I just can't put down, I love having books in my possession that I am genuinely excited to read, I love browsing bookstores, I love cramming my bookshelves with books old, new, and borrowed. I am currently reading "Naked" by David Sedaris - the only author I've come across who makes me literally laugh out loud. I borrowed this one from Zoe (thank you!) and have so many other borrowed books I really need to get my hands on. Hopefully now that summer is over and I'm not running around all over the place, I'll spend more time before bed squeezing a few chapters in each night.

G) friends and family: Dont' really need to provide much detail on this one. I thought it would be a good note to end on because I think the people in my life have been the only consistent things which have never lessened in value and are always my first and foremost blessing.