Giving Thanks!

Thank you to everyone who shared their Thanksgiving thoughts with us.
Here are some of the things that members of the USP community are thankful for:

thanksgiving_photoI am very thankful for having the privilege of working with the Scholars program (students, faculty, and staff) this past year, especially because of the zeal, positivity, intelligence, mindfulness, warmth, and hopefulness that exudes from every person with whom I have interacted.  These experiences continue to be a source of joy and motivation to me as a faculty mentor, teacher, researcher, and human being.  I look forward to all the new experiences to come!  Happy Thanksgiving to all!
-Professor Minus

I am grateful for all the years that I have taught at NU and to have enjoyed the company of so many fine students. This spring (God willing) I will welcome the arrival of two new grandchildren. -Professor Fowler

I am grateful that I have a job where curiosity is valued. -Professor Wood

I am thankful for almost everything in my fabulous, amazing, aggravating, crazy life. Here are a few:
Delicious, healthy foods from all over the world.
Brilliant, adventurous, quirky and challenging friends.
Massachusetts.
My mom (long may she live).
A difficult and rewarding job.
The beauty of the natural world (may we not wreck it.)
-Professor Cram

I am thankful for my life and my wife. For laughing and forgetting. For the earth, the sea, the sky, and the sun and all the beasts with whom we share them. For reading and learning, for the internet and insight. For family and friends and the companionship of others as we seek to connect right thinking with right doing, to be peaceful, joyful, and purposeful.
-Dr. Iacono

I am grateful to be a part of a community that welcomes, encourages, and celebrates its members in all the richness of their diverse talents, perspectives, and life experiences. We do not all see the world the same way (and I am so glad we don't), but we all see *each other* as valuable and irreplaceable. -Dr. Karas

I am so thankful for the amazing students that I have the opportunity to work with, my supportive co-workers, my wonderful family and friends, my loving husband, and my beautiful little daughter. -Dr. Molina-Markham

I'm thankful for the incredible academic and wordly opportunities that I have at Northeastern! I am thankful for my education. I am thankful for this place that allows me to interact with people from around the globe, learn from the talents of my peers, and pursue my personal, academic, career-oriented, and social goals! I am thankful for the relationships I have built here and the new home I have found. -Raquel Levy

I am eternally thankful for my friends and community I have found at Northeastern. I am a better person because of them. -Lauren Baumert

I'm so thankful for the people in my life who make me feel endlessly supported. At Northeastern, I've never felt alone.
-Hannah Bergam

I'm thankful for all the professors that I'm taking classes with. I learnt to write about social justice issues with empathy, approach philosophical questions with scientific methods and juxtapose democracy and Marxism in my philosophy class. But most importantly, I'm grateful for all my friends, mentors, professors and family who supported me throughout my co-op application process and helped me to grow as a person. -Connie E

All the people who show kindness and support in the presence of pain. -Ben Fickes

I'm utterly thankful for my partner who helped me get through a rough summer at home. I'm grateful for the brave girl in my class who exposed me to my opinion bubble and it's consequences. -Kaustubh Bansal

I am thankful for the opportunity of fighting together with my family and friends against the terrible situation Venezuela is facing. I am grateful that my family is part of that small number of Venezuelans who can afford food. I am grateful that I am able to help family and friends from abroad. I am grateful that I am a window of opportunities, and a source of hope for those who are still there. I am grateful for my country, but I am even more grateful for loving it the way I do, and for trusting that we can overcome this chaos and come back together as a nation of democracy and prosperity. I am grateful for being Venezuelan! -Carlos Elias Campos

I'm thankful to have a friend's family to spend Thanksgiving with on the East Coast. -Nik Pousette Harger

I am thankful for the new friendships I've made in the city of my dreams doing what I love. -Stephanie Stumbur

The image of Omran Daqneesh remained in my heart forever as the symbol of all the innocent victims of the big political games around the globe. I am thankful for Syrian Civil Defense ("the White Helmets") for the work they do for people still living in Syria. -Marita Dolidze

I am thankful for being able to be a part of a school where I am constantly inspired by the people around me. I am thankful for growing as a person over the last year as I have grown to acknowledge my flaws but more importantly I have grown to work through them and climb one step closer to who I want to be. -Anonymous

I'm so, so thankful for people with a good sense of humor! When someone makes you laugh in the worst times (i.e. post-election), you should hold onto them tightly. I'm lucky to be surrounded by people who crack me up every day.
-Francesca Brecha

The imminent release of Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. -Lynnsey Martin

I'm grateful for the diversity of thought and culture I've joined at Northeastern. I often take for granted the sheer variety of my friends and mentors, but with some perspective, I'm amazed by the breadth of this community's backgrounds, achievements, and goals for the betterment of the world. -Ben Moran

The last few years of high school have gone past like a whirlwind. Everyday was different and packed with activity. My lament, similar to any other student, was the lack of time to just be. Even with these time constraints and the chaotic schedules, there was one thing that provided hope for constancy - my daily phone call to my grandparents. Every morning I call my grandparents and give an account of what's been happening at my end. Their genuine concern and interest in my daily routine is overwhelming and is evidently all about their love and affection for me. Grandparents seem to sprinkle stardust over the everyday lives of children. This phone call routine began when I was seven and as I approach adulthood, our bond only grows stronger. This unique bond, the phone calls, the strolls and the dinners, are some things I really cherish and are things that truly matter to me. Grandparents are like sunlight in our lives, and I am fortunate to have a bright and sunny start to my day. -Vidhan Bhaiya

I'm grateful for the opportunity to grow, to connect, and to become more resilient as an individual and as a member of an increasingly strong community. I'm grateful for the challenges I've faced and for the challenges to come. I'm thankful, too, for my support system who push me and encourage me and pull me across the finish line of each challenge, who talk me down and raise me up and make me think differently than I did yesterday. I'm grateful for conversations that have made me stronger, for ideas that have made me question my own and let go of old convictions, and for the belief that we are each worthy of love and kindness and wholeness. -Anonymous

I'm thankful for Raashmi Patalapati. And puppies. Also ice cream. -Ross Beroff

Grateful for professors who I can wholeheartedly express my neuroticism to at neither expense of character or worth. For friends who don't shy away even when I push them towards anywhere but near me. For the opportinity to learn and the capacity to starve for dreams that feel intangible. -Anonymous

I am thankful for the opportunities and people who have come into my life through no work of my own. I am thankful for human friendliness and willingness to help strangers.
I am thankful to Manoj for all he did for the India dialogue.
I am thankful for the scientists and engineers who established the field I am in.
I am thankful for the series of checks and balances in the U.S. that limit presidential power.
I am thankful for the humor and support of my friends and family.
I am thankful for modern medicine, especially vaccines.
I am thankful for modern communications systems that allow me to talk to people on the other side of the world in a matter of seconds.
I am thankful for word processors.
I am thankful for writing, and for the printing press.
I am thankful for my TI-84 Plus Silver Edition Calculator.
I am thankful for the Scholars program, and the people who give of their time to make it work.
I am thankful for the power of story to allow people to consider new perspectives.
I am thankful for the fundamental freedoms and rights I don't have to worry about every day.
I am thankful for my professors and TAs for their patience.
I am thankful for the countless people who donate their time and money, in one way or another, to help others.
-Elizabeth Wig

I am thankful for the Scholars Program! If it weren't for the opportunities the program provides, I wouldn't have the opportunity to study outside of Ecuador, and I wouldn't have met such great people and friends. -Sarah Better

I am thankful for the many blessings that have been bestowed upon my family and my friends. -Andre Kirunda

I'm thankful to have the Scholars Program there, when I'm on campus and off.
I'm thankful for funding from NU (and for those who helped me get it) that lets me spend my weekend asking strangers what they think and feel. I'm thankful for my camera that lets me try to capture it.
I'm thankful for coworkers who make me laugh when co-op is just a little too stressful.
I'm thankful for friends who make me take a break when I think "I'm just fine" and I'm not.
I'm thankful for friends and family back home who will talk and listen at odd hours into the night.
I'm thankful for being almost done with the inconvenience of time differences, for at least a little while.
-Kara Morgan

I'm grateful for the opportunity to be able to focus on my interests in a driven and dedicated environment, and to experience college with a group of wonderful people in Boston. -Fizzah Shaikh

During my time at Northeastern I have grown increasingly thankful for my family. My parents and sister have always loved me unconditionally and have always supported me in my endeavors, even when it meant I wouldn't be home a lot. They are always there for me. I had always taken this for granted and over the last four years have realized how lucky I am to experience it and how much I have relied upon them. -Joseph Eisner

I am thankful for the warmth of friends, which has been a deep source of comfort amidst the difficulty of the semester and the turbulent political climate our country is facing. -Aaron Kubala

I'm thankful for my wonderful group of friends. They're always so uplifting and there when we need each other. -Emily Daniel

I'm thankful for the many interesting, good-natured people I've met and gotten to know this past year. -Kristen Brown

I would like to thank Dr. Lee-Parsons for helping me with the global co-op process and helping me find my upcoming co-op in Taiwan! -Matthew Lau

I am thankful for the endless opportunities I have been given to learn - about my academic focus, about the world, and about myself. Education is something we often taken for granted, and I truly appreciate every person and every thing in my life that has allowed me to gain knowledge and wisdom. -Anonymous

I am grateful for the first rate education and many opportunities Northeastern has provided. And I am grateful that I can graduate debt free- the feeling is liberating! -Anonymous

I am incredibly grateful for the DMSB Finance full-time co-op staff for working far harder than they need to to help out their students. They have positively impacted my time at Northeastern far more than I had ever expected and consistently demonstrate selflessness, kindness, and understanding. -Anonymous

For all the diverse and beautiful people I have met in these months.
For all opportunities to grow and find out who I am in the variety of contexts and people.
-Benjamin Novak

I am thankful for my friends.
I am thankful for all of the opportunities that I have at this university.
I am thankful for all of the ways that I have grown this past year and will continue to grow in the coming years.
-Emily Malterre

I am thankful for my fellow members of this Northeastern community that I have gotten to share these last four years with. -Marc Tawfik

I am grateful for all of the opportunities that have unfolded for me that have allowed me to continue to pursue my passions, learn about myself, and discover where life is leading me. -Anonymous

I am thankful for all the wonderful friendships I have made, and how each has taught me something new about the world and myself. -Johanna Loepke

I am thankful for the all the musical artists who continue to inspire me: I like to listen to the world around me and write my own music. -Murray Sandmeyer

Despite feeling at times cast-away in the past year, I friends and family who I love and who love and take care of me.
-Anonymous

I am thankful for my family. I thought I would be homesick when I came to college, and I was confused when I didn't miss Atlanta or the south. But then I realized that my "home" isn't a geographical location--it is the communities that surround me and the people who love me. -Ben Silvers

I am thankful for my loving, caring family who is always there for me, no matter what. I am blessed to have them in my life. -Anonymous

I am thankful for my heartache, for it has allowed me to understand and appreciate the non-duality of love.
-Christopher Osborne

To be where I am now: In Boston as a part of a community that is so supportive and successful. (I would have never imagined that I would be here a year ago.) -Alicia Kim

I am thankful to go to the best school ever!! Go Huskies!! -Anonymous

I am thankful to be studying at Northeastern University, in one of the greatest cities in the world, surrounded by some of the best people in the country. I am thankful to have so much love and support from my family and friends. And, I am thankful to have such an excellent opportunity to pursue my dreams and reach success. -Anonymous