One of the things I recommend to people when I am giving presentations about self-care is that it can be helpful to re-frame your view of things.  When you can take some time to recognize the good parts of a situation that might be difficult it can give you the emotional space and strength you need to keep going.  Thanksgiving has a complicated history, including plentiful inaccurate and racist depictions of history.  I can recognize that, and also celebrate that for me, Thanksgiving is a great reminder to take some time to be consciously grateful for all sorts of things.  And today, I’m going to ruminate on some of them!

• I’m grateful to have a job that pushes me to learn new things all the time, even though that is sometimes hard.
• I’m grateful to have supportive co-workers and boss.  So much learning supported and enhanced by these people, plus a whole lot of kindness, too.
• I’m grateful to work with so many remarkable librarians in IFLS-land.  There is so much creativity, generosity, and thoughtfulness amid all the busy-ness!
• I love having a wider network of librarians around Wisconsin who I can do exciting projects with, reflect with, and learn from.
• I appreciate having a job that matters, but also that no one’s life hangs in the balance if I mess up or need to take a break.

What are you thankful for?