Attitude of Gratitude

Moving to Manhattan, I knew I was going to experience many new things: a lot more traffic, many new friends, and several more people; but what I did not expect to experience was a flood. On the morning of September 3, 2018, I jumped out of bed because I heard a very loud banging on my door followed by Max Harman’s voice. Confused as to what was going on, I anxiously looked at my phone and saw several missed calls from Garrett, Krissy, and Max, who then shouted that the creek behind the trailer park I live in was flooding and we needed to get out! Never having faced a flood before, I had no idea what to take with me. I only grabbed my school backpack and a bag of clothes because, thinking optimistically, I thought we would be coming back very soon. Frantically, we left the trailer park as the water gradually crept higher and higher. Much to my surprise, there were already many firemen and policemen using jet skis and boats rushing to get people out of their houses. Once we were out and safe, I became concerned because I didn’t know what to do next.

Not sure where to go, I called Scuyler and asked if I could hang out with him and his roommate, Ben, for a while. They were nothing but welcoming to me and concerned about the entire situation; especially about where I would be staying later that night. They were helpful in thinking of many places and people I could stay with if it came to that. Even though the water had risen to almost two feet, it thankfully had receded and I was able to return home that night.

Thinking back on the entire day, I realized how fortunate I was to have such amazing teammates. They were all worried about me and my safety and they made sure to call me (even though I did not answer) just to ensure I was ok. Max even came to my house in order to make sure I was aware of the situation and made it out safely! Scuyler let me stay at his dorm for a couple hours when I had nowhere to go, plus the many text messages from Krissy, Michael, and Ms. Kane asking if there was anything they could do to help. I was at ease knowing if there was ever another intense situation, my team will always be there for me. I am so grateful to have such caring people around me who are willing to do anything to help during a very chaotic situation.

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.”

-Melody Beattie

What are some things to be grateful for in your life? How can you be thankful for the challenges that you’ve experienced? How can you say “thank you” more? Make sure to take the time to let the people in your life know how grateful you are for them!