How Thanksgiving Changed My Life

My favorite time of the year is the fall. There’s something about the scattering leaves and the chilly, crisp smelling nights going home after a long rehearsal. This time of the year also happens to include one of my favorite holidays to celebrate, thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a great day to remind yourself of all the things in your life for which you are thankful, from small things like your favorite song or a gift someone gave to you, to more influential things in your life like the people that you care about or a hobby that you may be interested to take up as a career when you are older. Throughout the year it is very easy to take the people and things in your life for granted, forgetting how much better these things make your life. When

you reflect upon the things that you are grateful for, you remind yourself to cherish them. Personally I am thankful for many things.

Some of the most influential things in my life have changed me so much and shaped me into the person I am today. If it wasn’t for my friends and family I wouldn't have nearly the amount of musical knowledge that I have now and I’m so grateful that I can be somewhat well versed in a topic that I am so passionate about. And when I get into the topic of my friends and family I always have the feeling that I am extremely lucky to have so many great people that care so much about me in my life, I always have someone to lean on when I’m going through a hard time, and I always feel like they support me in my choices to be in the BHS Drama Program. The BHS Drama program is something that I look forward to every day after school and honestly it gives me the motivation I need to go to school and get my work done. There are so many other things that I’m grateful for but if were not for these things than I would be a completely different person than I am now. I’ve made so many memories and shared so many experience with just these things alone, they take up almost all of my

life.
If it was not for music so many parts of my life would be so much more dull. You hear music everywhere you go, no matter where you are, you are most likely going to hear some sort of music, or have some beat that you are unable to get out of your head. But if it wasn't for this constant stream of music, even if it’s just in your head, life would be so uninteresting. Like everyone else there are times when something upsets me or aggravates me and I always feel that the best way to cheer myself up is to listen to music, it almost always influences my mood for the better, even sad music makes me happy in one way or another. For example whenever I get too stressed out from school and drama I’ll listen to some music for a little while and then I can get to work without being high strung and irritable. I also find that whenever I play music I often tend to forget that I even have any issues, sometimes I even lose track of time and pay for a couple of hours without even realizing it. Music that I have always been attached to and picked up easily, it is something that will always be apart of me. If it wasn't for my father though, I wouldn't have all of the equipment and experience with music that I do now, he’s also someone who has been very attached to music.
My father is someone who has always provided for me, whether it be with necessities like food and clothing, extra things like instruments and and electronics, or even just providing me with comfort and understanding. My dad is someone I can always count on, no matter what situation I am in, he is someone that will always try his best. He always wants the best for me. I remember one time when he was unable to come to one of my shows and he felt so bad about it because he really wanted to support me while I was there. He also teaches me about so many things that schools to really teach. I learned about basic common sense from him when I was very little, but he has also taught me about things like politics and different viewpoints on them. I've gotten so much of my artistic influence from my dad, all of the music I listen to, all of the shows I watch, all of the comedians I listen to, I’ve gotten them from my dad or they have somehow branched off or are related to the things my dad has shown me. One of my favorite things to do during the summer is hiking with my dad. It’s something that I’ve done a lot for the past few years and everything I learned about it was from my dad. Im also very lucky that my dad supports my love for acting and drama, I know that many students in drama have parents that are not so supportive and would rather that they take some sort of sport, or get a job. Because my dad is for me being in drama I’m able to do something that I am extremely passionate about.
I am very lucky to go to a school that has such a high quality drama program, it’s so good that it would not surprise me if it was one of the best in the state. It allows for me to get a lot of practice in theater and how things such as tech and lighting works. A lot of people have a hard time finding an outlet that is healthy for them and make them happy, a lot of people do drugs or become violent, or they just become extremely stressed from doing something they don’t like to do so I am pretty lucky that I found something that is healthy and makes me very happy. I’ve also made a ton of friends while in drama too, everyone is so welcoming and supportive and overall they make great people to become friends with, especially because we are all passionate about the same things. I’ve also gained the guidance of many adults in the drama program that are willing to help me with getting further in acting and music and for that I’m very grateful for.
Even just after writing this I have become much more aware of how lucky I am for everything I have available to me.

During thanksgiving I really like to reflect on everything I have and it’s just a great way to remind myself to be more generous and to hold what and who I love dearly and show them that I care about them. Especially during this time of year when everything can be very stressful with the end of the semester and some mid terms, it gives me a chance to think on the less fortunate who don’t even get an education and would love the chance to get what I have. I’m so thankful for my availability to music and the abundance of caring people in my life with so many opportunities for me right at this moment. I realize that a lot of people take everything they have for granted and honestly everyone does this from time to time, I really like to just bluntly tell people that I care about them and that I’m thankful for them to be in my life at this point, even if it's just to remind myself to be more grateful towards them. Just think about what you have and be grateful for the good

things.