Help me if you can I'm feeling down/ And I do appreciate you being round

It's been a little bit of time since I last posted. Lots of responsibilities regarding graduate school, wedding planning, film schedule, etc. has really prohibited me from accurately expressing my emotions in a creative manner. Not only that, but my better half is very busy with work so spending quality time together has been a bit of a challenge.

In this high time of stress in our lives, I've been thinking a lot about appreciation and I found this fantastic quote:

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”---JFK

Appreciation. We can appreciate the beauty of something, the talent of something, the importance of something. Then, we appreciate people: friends, family, spouses, domestic partners, etc. Why do we appreciate them and how do we show it? For me, I appreciate character traits and talents of my friends in order to learn from them in some way. Every day is a learning experience. Every second is a chance for me to better myself, improve my relationships with friends, and build a stronger relationship with my spouse. Like Kennedy said, expression of gratitude should occur by actually living your words. Words weigh more than actions.

Are we always cognizant of being appreciative of others? What prevents us from doing so? Sometimes we take things for granted, which isn't necessarily meant in a negative tone but can sometimes be perceived as so. We get into a routine, a pattern, and forget about the things that we do for others.

Joey has been incredibly supportive of me for our entire relationship. The way that I show my appreciation to him is by reciprocating that support and by helping him whenever/wherever needed. He helped me study for COMPS, so I'm helping him with his show. Sometimes though, I catch myself taking things for granted. Expressing gratitude encourages others not only to keep putting energy into a relationship, but it ensures that that person doesn't feel like they're being walked all over.

The point? Just take five minutes tomorrow to tell someone that you appreciate them. It takes a small amount of time but can have lasting effects.

Xoxox,

Leslie