The Conclusion of a Break

I truly appreciate this Thanksgiving Break. It has been a blessing to be home with family for a few days. Now that the break is over, I am looking forward to getting back to work to conclude another semester. I am grateful to have something to work on now that the break is over.

Nutella

I don't think I have yet expressed gratitude for Nutella. I wondered if I may have written about it before, but I don't think I have. This evening I enjoyed Nutella on waffles. I enjoy and appreciate the thick, delicious taste from that finest of chocolate hazelnut spreads. A local restaurant has recently added new desserts to their menu and most of their desserts involve Nutella in one way or another. I am grateful for the versatility and most importantly the yumminess of this delicious treat.

"Thankful"

I put the title of this post in quotation marks because I am referring to a song in Josh Groben's Christmas album, Noel. The lyrics read in part:

"Some days, we forget to look around us.
Some days, we can't see the joy that surrounds us
So caught up inside ourselves
We take when we should give.

So for tonight, we pray for
What we know can be;
And on this day, we hope for
What we still can't see.

It's up to us to be the change;
And even though we all could still do more,
There's so much to be thankful for.
...
It's up to us to be the change;
And even though this world needs so much more,
There's so much to be thankful for."

What I appreciate most about this song is not just the fact that it reminds the listener to be grateful. It acknowledges that there is so much work that still needs to be done to make our world more ideal, more perfect. Yet, with everything that is being done and has yet to be done to make things right and good in the world, "even though we all could still do more", we truly have so much to be grateful for. That is what I try to remember every single day, and that is why I make the effort to express my gratitude daily.

"This world needs so much more", but each year we rest from our diligent efforts and reflect on what we have now and the progress we've made. I am grateful for this reminder in the form of a lovely holiday song.

Christmas Trees

My sister and I put up our Christmas tree at home today. To me this is when it generally becomes official: We are most certainly in my favorite time of the year. I really like the symbolism of a Christmas tree. It symbolizes the Christmas season and in several ways it serves as a symbol for various aspects of the Nativity Story.

Bing Crosby

I am grateful for Bing Crosby because of his marvelous contribution to classic Christmas music. My sister and I listened to a whole album of his Christmas songs while on a plane home, and it made for a lovely trip. Christmas includes many great things, and one of those things is the voice of Bing Crosby. I also really enjoy one song he sang in collaboration with David Bowie: "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy". It is a classic.

Vocal Point

Vocal Point is the name of the best male a cappella group at Brigham Young University in Utah. I had heard some other a cappella groups before I heard them, but my freshman year of college saw my first exposure to Vocal Point. I saw them in concert and auditioned for a spot in the group. I have yet to make it into Vocal Point but I have found many other opportunities to perform a cappella music. Today I am grateful for Vocal Point because watching them perform has served as a major inspiration for me to start learning how to make cool beatbox and echo sounds with my mouth. Four years after I really started to learn how to beatbox I know I have made considerable progress, and I can even make a very convincing echo effect with my voice. I will keep working hard to prepare for the annual Vocal Point auditions, but now it's more a matter of becoming a better performer overall, and to find ways to make people smile. Because there are excellent groups out there like Vocal Point, we all can be encouraged to pursue excellence as well.

Chocolate Milk

Yesterday I expressed gratitude for hot chocolate. Today I express gratitude for some colder chocolate. This evening a friend shared some especially delicious chocolate milk with me, and I was reminded how much I love the taste of chocolate milk. That is what I am grateful for today.