be thankful
Happy Monday! After taking a week off to spend time with my family and friends in the Garden State and Philadelphia, it’s good to be back! Thanksgiving was such a fun-filled week, seeing the people I love most in my life, catching up on our lives, and celebrating my cousin's wedding!
It’s so important to spread love and compassion. People are all fighting their own hard battles, but true human connection can do so much to heal. Two years ago, my mom lost her sister. I’ve written about it before, and you can read that piece by clicking here. On Thanksgiving we each went around the table and talked about the things we were thankful for, which was a really positive experience. Most of us talked about various goals we achieved and lessons we learned in the past year (and I obviously gushed about Archy, as well as a bunch of doors that have opened in both my professional and personal life). It’s always nice to be around family. But it’s hard, too, when you miss the family that’s no longer with you.
Have you lost someone you love and yet still find yourself using different phrases that person would say? Are there any meaningful tokens you hold onto as a reminder of that person? Any pictures?
I took my little siblings to see “Coco” last night and was blown away. It reminded me of a mashup of “Kubo and the Two Strings” and “The Book of Life,” and it was beautiful. It really hit some poignant notes about family, as well as fighting for what you want. I’ve written before about memory and the brain, especially in the post about my aunt and her battle with Cancer. But the people who mean the most to us are the ones we continue to talk about in their absence - the ones we refuse to forget.
I, personally, have a few tokens that belonged to my Aunt, as well as my Mom Mom’s journal from World War II. I’ve written about my Mom Mom’s journal before, and I actually wore my Aunt’s pearls as part of a Halloween Flapper costume. I don’t hold onto too many things, but those are two things that bring me a lot of joy and a feeling of connection.
In “Coco,” families put out photos of deceased loved ones and offerings for Dia de los Muertos so that their spirits could come visit. It’s a beautiful celebration to see, but the thing that stuck out the most was the idea of forgetting. Coming from an old-school Irish family that passes down folklore and family stories of those who came before us, it was nice to see that parallel in “Coco.” So many people get caught up in the rat race of life and the ego of it all that they forget the most important things of all, and of course, they’re not things: those who love them, those who support them when things are hard, and those who encourage them to do their best.
So, in addition to all the amazing things that have happened for me so far this year, I’m grateful for “Coco,” for my amazing family and friends at home and in LA, that the Eagles are 10-1, and for the amazing new people who’ve entered my life. Love is amazing, and life is beautiful.
Thank you so much for reading, and, as always, if you have any pressing questions or if you want to discuss something further with me, feel free to subscribe below, follow me on Instagram or Twitter, or reach out to me on the “contact” page. I’m so grateful you're here and that I’ve been getting a lot of really challenging questions and even better feedback from a community all over the world. I couldn’t do this without you! So THANK YOU! I’m here for you, and I love hearing from you, too! You’re the best, and you have everything you need inside of you! Please believe it! Starve your ego, feed your soul - and follow your heart!