30 days of gratitude

By: 
Monika Spaulding, Digital Editor

I love the cartoons and memes about people jumping right from Halloween into Christmas. I know some of these people...in fact, for those who don’t know, LPC sports writer Josh Lewis is one of them! He loves Christmas and everything that comes with it. He and Kate Wehlann have already started enjoying their Christmas music.

While I don’t mind that way of thinking, to each his own, it is not for me. My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and I savor all 30 days of November! Of course, I could listen to Christmas music anytime tho...

Every year at Thanksgiving, we are reminded to think about the things we are thankful for. While we should give thanks daily for the big things and the simple things in life, sometimes we need a reminder to stop and appreciate what we have, or at least I know I do.

Online, I came across a photo a friend had shared. It said Photo a Day, 30 Days of Gratitude. It gives you a list of things to take photos of every day to remind you to appreciate the simple parts of life. Some examples are, I am grateful for: this moment, these hands, this routine, this inspiration, etc.

I have started it, tho I’m a couple of days late because I didn’t come up on it until Nov. 3, and I have enjoyed it so much! The challenge has reminded me to stop, look around and appreciate it all, every day. Because I love photography and capturing images, this has been a great challenge for me and I wanted to share with our readers.

Whether you are a social media fan or not, I still challenge you to follow this for the month of November. Take pictures on your own or read the daily challenge and pause to think about what part of your life would fit for each day’s suggestion of gratitude.

I love this month, with the falling leaves, the changing of the weather and the emotions that revolve around Thanksgiving for me, the smells, the sounds, the wonderful feeling of family and friends gathering together.

I hope everyone who reads this takes the time to look at themselves, look at their every day routines, the people in their lives and the things they make take for granted and truly appreciate what this life has to offer.

I am so thankful to have a supportive husband, three amazing children, a wonderful group of friends, for the roof over my head and food on my table every night. I am thankful for this community and the people who work hard to make it a great place to live, for the schools and teachers who have such an impact on my kids and for a job I love to come to and I feel makes an impact on this life.

I hope you all have a blessed holiday season and take time to truly feel the season, breathe it, enjoy it, live it.

-monika@salemleader.com

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