We all walk through seasons where life looks fine on the outside, but feels heavy on the inside. Days where we smile out of habit, work out of duty, and keep going because stopping would hurt more. We pretend we’re okay — even when we’re not.

Gratitude is not denying your pain. Gratitude is remembering your blessings while you carry it. — Fortitude, Vol. XV

In those moments, unexpected angels often appear. The friend who gently reminds you of what you still have. The relative who points out the good in your life when you can’t see it. The person who says, “You’re hurting, but look — you’re still blessed in so many ways.”

It’s easy to respond, “You don’t understand.” And sometimes, it’s true — they don’t. But perhaps their reminder is not a dismissal of your pain, but a lifeline. A hand reaching into the dark to say, “Don’t lose sight of everything that’s still holding you.”

As this year comes to a close, may we choose to fill the remaining days with quiet thankfulness — not because everything is perfect, but because even in the imperfection, there is still beauty, still care, still love surrounding us.

Let’s remember the people who have less, love the people who feel unseen, and cherish the blessings we’ve been given. Let’s end the year with gratitude — not as a performance, but as a practice of the heart.

A way of saying to the world, and to ourselves: “I’m still here. And there is still so much to be thankful for.”