I wanted to take a moment to relay my state of being this morning in relation to Thanksgiving, and to express my gratitude to some deserving people in my life. If you know me, you know that I am an avid proponent of expressing gratitude on a daily basis, but this Thanksgiving presents me with a unique opportunity to examine why being grateful, as a way of life, is so important to me.
I found myself among the ranks of the unemployed as of yesterday. While it was not entirely unexpected, being suddenly without a steady source of income is stressful, to say the least. Yet, despite what lies ahead for me in facing a job search in this economy, I remain completely grateful for my life. When I relayed the news to my friends and family, I was instantly reminded how much of a support system that I have in them. There were minimal condolences, and much asking about prospects and affirmations of my ability to overcome. There were reminders that these people would do all that they could to help and that I would never want for the basics in life. When I posted about it on Twitter, I was flooded by empathy, sympathy and offers to assist. For the most part, the people taking the time to express their support are total strangers to me. They are people that I have never met, never talked to beyond political discussion or the random light hearted conversation in 140 characters. I am beyond grateful, and not at all surprised. My followers on Twitter and my friends on Facebook are, without a doubt, the shining example of true compassion that many like to say doesn’t exist in the Conservative realm of political activists. Deniers be damned; I see it every.single.day.
I was raised, like so many of my Twitter and Facebook friends, to depend on myself and to turn to family and friends if the need should arise. I was not raised to seek a handout or to give up responsibility during the more difficult moments in life. I have grown up knowing that I am the only one who controls my actions and reactions to the trials in life. I am thankful to have been so empowered and to have chosen to live my days keeping that responsibilty and its impact in the forefront of my mind at all times.
In particular, I am eternally grateful for my parents for instilling that sense of responsibility and sense of security that comes with a family that loves one another across great distances. I am grateful to my ex-husband for continuing to be a real friend and a source of daily encouragement and support. The Conservative Daily News staff is daily inspiration to me! These amazing people are dedicated to their lives, their families, their careers.. and to you, our readers. They are passion for freedom and propserity, embodied and exhibited in the extra time they take and effort they make to write for YOU!
I am ever mindful, and very often reminded, of the support I have from my online friends. I am taking this space to say a very warm “THANK YOU!” to Loren Heal (@lheal on twitter) for not only being a daily source of inspiration to me and many in #tcot, but for thinking of me so specifically yesterday. Loren and I have never met, and yet he has gone out of his way to encourage and offer his assistance in helping me in my job search. I am overwhelmed at his generosity!
Happy Thanksgiving, friends and strangers. May each and every one of you find yourself as blessed and as empowered in your every day as I am! #OccupyGrateful
Social media has many functions. One is to help friends. I am a day late to this story but wanted to send it around. Michelle is one of the founding members of the twisters, as am I. As such, we are twisters or twitter sisters. To those that are not aware, this means we are pretty much sisters. We are tight. I know Michelle is self sufficient, as she so eloquently states but if I can help, I will. I can attest to her writing ability, in-depth knowledge of conservative politics, social media savvy and ability to meet a tight deadline. Michelle also has significant experience as the co-host of an online radio show. If anyone knows of a paid writing position, social media job or anything else that may be a good fit for Michelle, please contact her. Michelle does not know I am posting this and did not request help. It’s just what we twisters do. This is rather an informal letter of recommendation. I would be happy to provide a more formal one. Please tweet me @hipEchik if you so desire. Thank you! Teri.
I am saddened to hear my Twitter Sister is now without a job. This is the first I am hearing about it as I am only on twitter occasionally these days, I do know that Michelle is a very resourceful person and will over come any obstacle that stands in her way. If there is anything I can do to help out consider it done! My fellow twister is a strong and smart individual who will survive.