Thankful Thursday

1. I'm thankful for youth. I was helping at our Family History Center last night and got to teach some 12-year-old scouts about family history. They were great kids. Teaching them about family history reminded me that it was at about that age that I started to feel interested in family history myself. I think teenager-hood is hard but is such a fascinating part of your life, too. I'll be forever thankful that my teenager-hood was generally a positive time and that I was able to grow so much during that time.

2. I'm thankful for America. Today is, after all, September 11th, a day which none of us who were alive in 2001 will ever see as any other regular day. Remembering that is getting me all teary-eyed. I was actually in Brazil on a mission in 2001, so one of my only memories of that actual day was seeing the planes hit on someone's TV and them telling me "es en tu pais" (that's in your country). I felt so far away from it and wanted to understand better what happened but didn't have the chance to then. More recently I've read eye witness accounts, conspiracy theories, the 9/11 commission report, and a report on the 9/11 commission report on what happened. I've felt anger at our leaders' failures (not that I believe the conspiracy theories but I do believe that in many ways we were not on the ball) and fear that terrorism is something that's not going away for a long time. Overall I'm left with a feeling that I am thankful to live in the U.S. and that we still have a lot of good things going despite our problems. Being born here has allowed me to grow up pretty safe and comfortably, has given me opportunities to learn and to take care of myself, and in so many other ways has blessed my life. I am proud to be an American.

3. I'm thankful for sunsets. I think it's neat that often the sun doesn't just set but that it sets in such a beautiful and magnificent way. I feel like it's just one more way that God says He loves us.