Giving Thanks – PhDStudent

Today is Thanksgiving Day, and the first thing that I am thankful for is the fact that I had no alarm set and was able to sleep in until 8:15 am for the first time in over 6 months.

As I took a moment to really contemplate on what it means to be thankful I spent some time really reflecting on what it is exactly that I am thankful for. Though it is easy to get caught up in the day to day drama of graduate school and fall into a pattern of pissing and moaning, today I did not focus on that. Today I thought about all that I as a graduate student have to be thankful for. This is what I came up with:

I am thankful that I have the opportunity to receive the highest level of education available in the United States of America.

I am thankful that I have been born with and refined the abilities to achieve a degree that less than 1% of all Americans will obtain.

I am thankful for the support from my friends, peers, and coworkers that have helped me survive one of the most difficult time periods of my life.

I am thankful for receiving training from the number one employer of psychologists.

I am thankful for each and every client who has entrusted me with their life including their pain, struggles, growth, and allowed me the honor of helping them to both accept and change their lives for the better.

I am thankful that all of the members of my family who have choose to fight for this country’s freedom have come home alive and healthy.

I am thankful that I can piss and moan about graduate school, because working on a doctorate is the biggest of my worries.