That was one of my favorites. What a fabulous way to think of a birthday! And so true...
Nasim has been keeping a list of things for which she's grateful and I hope she won't mind if I pirate her idea real quick. I've been thinking about the year and I'm really amazed at how quickly it passed and how much has happened. A good time to reflect, I think! Everyone should have a personal reflections gathering on their birthday complete with cake and dancing! Good dancing of course...no polka (sorry polka enthusiasts).
So here is a list of events for which I'm grateful that I'm pretty sure have happened this year.
- Meeting Nasim, quickly becoming related, and spending every waking minute with each other...even if sometimes we have nothing to say because we've spent every waking minute with each other.
- The hilarity of pioneering.
- The test of pioneering.
- The glorious seconds of feeling blessed to be a part of pioneering.
- Getting phone calls from dear friends and sharing laughter and poems and sometimes tears together.
- Seeing the Caribbean Sea.
- Sharing the same house with my sister for a semester and getting to know her wonderful friends.
- Working for Dr. Karen and learning so much about food and the human body.
- Thanksgiving at the Youngs'.
- Spending Saturday mornings on the porch with Mama and the occasional Daddy just chatting in our pajamas and watching the flower beds release tiny hoardes of insects into the warming air.
- Being invited to Nina's wedding with all of her fantastically supportive and compassionate family.
- Devotional gatherings with Jessie, Caitlin, Nick, Elena, and Mataya under the moon...even if it took us an hour and a half to find the place and we were so tired by the end we could barely walk home from the parking lot.
- The horticulture garden study-break-escapes at school.
- Being under Ozzie's (our very maternal advisor at school) wing for three short months
- Being in school! Being out of school and working for a time always makes me appreciate the things school has to offer; classes like Weed Science, Sustainable Agriculture, African Politics, Contemporary Physics, and other classes that at least sound good in theory and usually are good in practice.
- Not the Math Emporium. For those who don't know, it's purgatory.
- All forms of dancing including swing, salsa, contra, and the kinds you do in the dark so no one will know you're doing it wrong.
- Watching old movies at Nana's and talking about boys.
- Turning 21 and unintentionally stealing the show at Erin's wedding and being surrounded by all my cousins, aunts, uncles, and nanas.
- Walking across campus at 5:30 am and feeling totally safe in the misty, streetlight glow.
- Leaving my family. I know, I know, but it showed me how painful it was to leave them and how much I really love them. Family love is something you don't get just anywhere.
- This one goes without saying but most things about the Trinidad training I feel grateful for, including, but not limited to, afternoon cookies, drums, ukelele pandemonium, singing, all the uplifting conversations, knowing that we're all united in spirit, and the strong sense of purpose one felt in being present at such a training.
- Seeing Dani and Parisa and Qurra before leaving.
- Spending part of the fast with Ruhiyyih and eating turnips, too much dairy, granola, homemade bread and jam, farm raised pork, greens, salads, ridiculous amounts of indian food, chai, and almost carrot-top stew (thankfully not--carrot tops contain strychnine!) in the mornings and evenings.
- Dawn on the farm.
- Getting to see my Costa Rican family last summer.
- Spending 2 weeks with all those hakem champions at last year's youth initiative.
- Falling in love with the public transit system (that might be an overstatement).
- Falling out of love with desperately trying to eliminate acne and finally leaving the whole proceedure alone.
- Spring following winter once again.
- Planting in the garden with my Pops.
21 was a good year. Thanks to all who made it possible! Hopefully this one turns out to be as important as the last one.
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