Sometimes it’s hard to find the things to be thankful for. Like, really hard. I try to tell my kids “there’s always always something to be grateful for. Even when it feels like there isn’t.” But I will admit, it’s been a struggle to find even the tiniest of things lately. The last few years we’ve been buried in the deep lonely places of parenting, the places where no matter what you do or how much you love, it doesn’t seem to make any difference. It’s a deeply discouraging place to be. And yes, it’s hard to find the good things there. Yesterday felt like any other day, trying to stay positive, repeating the silent prayers again and again: help me find the good… It was later in the day, as the sunlight faded through the trees outside my in-laws house, when I sat reading over the scrawling on their Thanksgiving tablecloth; the “I am thankful for’s” that we write every year when we gather. Many were the usual: family, home, pets…but then I stumbled on a note written in red earlier that day by my child who has been fighting in silence for so long: “I’m thankful for parents who are patient with me.” I stared at it for a minute, hardly believing what I saw, letting the hope flood into the empty spaces in my heart. It felt like her hand was reaching out for mine in the dark, squeezing my fingers in that silent rhythm like we used to… I. Love. You. What sweetest of gifts, to be reminded just when it feels like we are failing hopelessly at this parenting thing, that maybe—just maybe—we are doing okay. The good things are there, friends. They might be buried deep, and it might take awhile to find them, especially if the world around you feels dark and hopeless. But keep looking…there’s always always something to be thankful for. And once you find it, I promise the hope will follow.