ten things i’m thankful for

i know it’s sunday and i’m posting a top ten tuesday. i also know that thanksgiving is over and i’m writing a thanksgiving post. DON’T JUDGE. i was super busy this past week (performance and all) and then busier (vacation and black friday shopping) but i still wanted to write a post on how thankful i am.

in all things bookish…

bookstagram

i have to start off this list with bookstagram (aka books on instagram). if i hadn’t created my bookstagram account, i wouldn’t have created my blog or met all these amazing people or cherished my love for books. (well, i’d be a reader but not an avid reader. and that makes all the difference.) i’d share a few of my favorite accounts i found along the way, but i’ll dedicate an entire post to that later. 😉 (honorary mention: booklr aka books on tumblr. although i joined later, booklr is also fantabulous.)

the blogging community

the best part of blogging is the people. i probably wouldn’t have lasted this long if not for the great friends i’ve made (and i’m going to say this over and over again). special thanks to these cool cupcakes for being spectacular (in alphabetical order):

aila from one way or an author // annie from the runaway reader // aneeqah from my not so real life // ava from bookishness and tea // kaitlin from next page please // jen from books and other happy ever afters // jess from princessica of books // shanelle from the art of escapism // tamara from tamaraniac // AND SO MANY MORE

BOOKS!

i wouldn’t be here if not for books (duh). so thanks to these fantastic books for being, um, fantastic. these aren’t always the BEST books i’ve ever, but they’re impactful in my reading life and regular life.

CHARLOTTE’S WEB, by e.b. white // THE CLIQUE, by lisi harrison // ROOKIE MAGAZINE, by tavi gavinson // SHIVER, by maggie stiefvater // DIVERGENT, by veronica roth

publishers who’ve given me the time of day

i know publishers are extremely busy, so i’m super thankful for those who’ve responded to or even looked at my emails. i’m even more thankful to the ones who’ve given me some pretty fantastic stuff so thank you thank you thank you. (special thanks to: disney-hyperion, penguin random house, st. martin’s press, and scholastic!)

authors, creators, and other dreamers

to all the authors, creators, and artists: THANK YOU. if you’re working in a something that’s related to art (yes, i consider writing a form of art), THANK YOU. it makes me sad to say that art isn’t usually in someone’s “ideal job” list. it’s not promoted in schools, and it’s often times degraded. i mean, look at the amount of math/science courses we’re required to take vs the amount of design/art courses. it makes youngins, such as myself, feel the need to pursue something we wouldn’t necesarily thrive in. (cough anything math related cough) when i see people who try to push for art, it gives me hope that the future is possible for artists like me. :’-)

because i have a life outside of books, i’m thankful for…

my family

all the hugs go to my parents and sister! this is something i often take for granted, so yayyyy to my family. *squishes in a group hug even though we don’t really hug* although there are its ups and downs (like all families), i’d be nowhere without their support. everyone is super supportive and i know i can rely on them for everything.

all the privileges i have

recently i had an existential crisis and i kept replying the first line of THE GREAT GATSBY, which is:

“In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since. ‘Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,’ he told me, ‘just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.'”

there are so many things that come so easily to me – food, housing, an education, clothes, electronics, and so much more – that i often don’t even think about. it’s all already there and i don’t ever need to worry about it. when it fully hit me how lucky i am, i realized how materialistic and shallow i (and i’m sure many others) can be (but it’s not mine – our – intention). i guess it made me extremely grateful for all that’s given to me, but it also makes me a bit sad. (because who am i to deserve all this stuff more than the next person?) (see? an existential crisis over here.)

opportunities given (and not given)

following up the last thankful-thing, i’m thankful for all the things that have happened this past year (or my lifetime, i guess). it’s kinda weird to say this, but i’m thankful for all the things that didn’t happen this year: the rejections, downfalls, and so-called failures. there were times when they (the failures) allowed other, better opportunities to arise.

life

(i’m seriously in an existential mood.) to match the mood, i’m thankful for life. (YAY!) sometimes i forget that life is a gift and it could easily be taken away from me. so thank you, Holy Thing That Could Be God But Also Could Not Be God, for giving me the gif that is life.

finally, the most important one: korean food

this is OBVIOUSLY the most important one since it’s only my favorite food in the entire world. and a honorary mention: ice cream. oh, k-food, whenever i was having a bad day, you’d lift my spirits with your deliciousness. love you to the moon and back.

what are you thankful for in your life?