I Am Grateful for Marmots

Being grateful is a big deal for my family during Thanksgiving. We always write lists about gratitude and share them right before dinner on Thanksgiving day, while waiting for the turkey to finally finish cooking so nobody gets salmonella. I don't think my gratitude lists have changed that much over the year -- I'm grateful for my siblings, my parents, my friends, education, housing, financial stability, clean water, health, intellectual freedom, and democracy. Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on the giant things that make life excellent, to think about the underlying themes that you wouldn't otherwise consider.

But what my family doesn't share before Thanksgiving are the smaller things that bring us joy on a daily basis. I think it's important to be able to see patterns of priviledge in your life, while also noticing individual occurences that inspire gratitude. So here's a list of little things that I'm grateful for, in no particular order and with no real significance other than that they make me happy. 

  1. Marmots. I've always loved finding Marmots while hiking in the mountains, and about a year ago I learned that there are also marmots in Illinois! I know, isn't that just amazing!? You can spot groundhogs (which are in the marmot family) along Windsor next to the Pollinarium each spring. Seeing a marmot really just makes my day.
  2. Toasters. There's nothing like a perfectly toasted toast, and we have toasters to thank for their amazing toasting services. Thank you, toasters.
  3. Reeeeeally big leaves. There's this one tree near the engineering quad that keeps dropping these massive green-orange leaves, and every time I see one I just have to pick it up. I mean, how can you see a wonderful leaf and not get that unmistakable urge to bend down and grab it?
  4. Wet dog smell. I don't wash my dogs very often because they are old and obese and scared of water, so when they need a bath it's a whole project. But something about the wonderful smell of wet dog makes these difficult baths worth it. I've been told that wet dog smells disgusting, but something about that distinctive, warm canine smell is simply wonderful. 
  5. Mandolin music. Nothing is quite as happy as a very speedy mandolin solo. I've always wanted to learn how to play the mandolin myself, but I have little time and slow fingers. For now, just listening to someone like Sierra Hull or Chris Thile play will have to be enough. 
Those were the first things that popped into my head, but I know there are so many other things I'm also grateful for. Thanks for reading this sleep-deprived post, and I hope you also find little things that inspire gratitude (especially during Thanksgiving, when your siblings are suddendly thankful for you and you mom gets all teary and you're just sitting there hoping that your crazy great-uncle doesn't bring up his pot farm again and he doesn't start yelling at your great-step-aunt about gay marriage).

Comments

  1. Prithika RaviNovember 26, 2019 at 12:14 PM

    I really like this post! I feel like we all have our unique interests and things that we are thankful for that are special to us. We can especially get a little distracted and tense during the holiday season so simply thinking of these little things can make us that much happier. This post was a refreshing reminder of those little things:)

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