Christmas sometimes makes us forget Thanksgiving. The time when we think about the Inga we are thankful for. The cheesier things like family and health. But it also makes us think about the slightly smaller but still important things. Like our education, stability, and safety. The difference in these things is the perspective you have. My family is important but without them my education would not be possible. The amount of time I spent with them as a kid is actually crazy. A lot of the things that we learn about are so connected with our childhood experiences.

Cooking is something I love to do and I learned everything I know about it I learned from my mom and my grandma. I never realized how valuable those moments were to my life now. I am realizing that there are things that are so valuable to me now that I spent my life learning. The pieces that you do not realize you have until you need them are often the most valuable. When I walk into a new place I know how to deal with no situations and new experiences and that is because of my family. They made sure that I had all of the tools I needed to be the strong person that I am today.

I can remember standing in the kitchen with my grandmother learning to make apple pie or lasagna. She would bring out a stool because I wasn’t even tall enough to see over the counter. She helped me and also told me about my family: Who they are or were and what they did. She always made sure that we knew about our history within our family. She has hundreds photos from forever ago that she shares with us when the family is all together. I learned a lot in that kitchen with my grandmother just finding out things I didn't know.

My sister and I went to school in a different town for various reasons but needless to say we spent a lot of time in a car going back and forth. I did not get the same experiences as others for this reason. However I did get to spend a lot of quality time with my mom. Just about the things that were going on in our lives but it was nice to get to have those conversations. To be able to just bond and talk, sometimes I think we forget about that in this world.

I like to reflect on times like these in my life because it shows that I have grown and changed. But that is not as scary as it sounds there are many things that cause change in life. It is a time of year that people start to think about what makes them thankful. And I am thankful for the people around me and the impact they have had in my life. They have taught me to be an independent person and to be strong in whatever I do. The most applicable thing that I have ever been told is to believe in yourself because you can do this.