Last year, freshly signed with Ms. Awesome Agent, awash in monumental gratitude, I posted this: https://katiaraina.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/a-year-in-my-writing-life-things-i-am-thankful-for/

Today, I would like to offer up yet another thank you letter to Dear Universe.

Dear Ms. Beautiful Universe,

Thank you for:

1. the fall 

2. my blog 🙂

3. my agent, still by my side — still armed with faith and confidence and patience

4. early mornings, before the world wakes up

5. my purry meowy cat named Pitch Black Raina

6. my freckled beauty of a dog named Lucky Angel

7. France and Italy, the mountains and the sea

 8. coffee

9. dark chocolate

10. the sound of my daughter’s voice

10. the small beauty mark on my hubby’s left ear (and an identical one on my son’s)

11. French red wine

12. the library

13. my writing friend Patti Brown

14. teens (the ones I have already met – and those I haven’t – yet)

15. being 33

16. walks  

17. the colors of leaves outside my window

18. acupuncture

19. BOOOOOKS (need I say it?)

20. my history – the Russian thing

21. but being home here – this country is home, has always been (another post idea coming on as I write this)

22 talented authors who have done it and done it well

23. their readers (and one day soon – mine!)

24. tonight, my daughter hugging me and out of nowhere, telling me why she thinks I am amazing!

25. I’d like to share a line from a little kid’s “what I am thankful for” writing I saw displayed on the wall across from my daughter’s first-grade classroom:

“I am thankful for the world because God made it for me.”

 That’s exactly the way I feel.

Happy Thanksgiving!