A Modern Thanksgiving — And a Note From My Heart
This week my inbox has been flooded with Thanksgiving promos, Black Friday deals, and emails telling me how to spend my money. But then I opened one from Seth Godin that made me stop.
He wrote that if we designed a modern Thanksgiving, we’d celebrate two things:
The people who give us the love and support we need to make a difference.
And the opportunity to build something bigger than ourselves through connection and creativity.
When I read that, I immediately thought of all of you.
When I Tried to Do Life Alone
For a long time, I lived life in isolation.
Not physically, but emotionally.
I told myself I preferred it—quiet, separate, safe.
But the truth is, living that way wasn’t serving me at all.
I wasn’t dreaming.
I wasn’t growing.
I wasn’t becoming who I wanted to be.
In fact, I felt… dead inside.
I didn’t know how to imagine a future version of myself because I didn’t feel connected to the present one.
How I Started to Wake Back Up
The shift happened slowly.
One of the biggest turning points was taking the Art2Life program with Nicholas Wilton.
It forced me to look inward—really look.
What do I love?
What lights me up?
What feels like me?
Art became the doorway into actually meeting myself again.
It sounds simple, but it changed the entire way I thought about my life.
What You’ve Given Me
But the real transformation happened here—with all of you.
This group has given me something I didn’t know how to ask for:
the safety to be myself.
Through your stories, your vulnerability, your creativity, and your generosity, you reminded me that:
we don’t have to do life alone
we become more ourselves in community
connection brings us back to life
being seen helps us see ourselves more clearly
Because of you, I’ve remembered how to dream again.
How to grow.
How to trust my instincts.
And how to step into who I’m meant to be.
I’m becoming myself because I feel accepted here.
My Thanksgiving Gratitude
This year, my gratitude list starts with you.
Thank you for your kindness.
Thank you for your courage.
Thank you for your creativity.
Thank you for the way you show up—honestly, imperfectly, beautifully.
Thank you for letting me walk this journey alongside you.
You’ve helped me become who I am.
And for that, I am deeply, forever grateful.
With love,
Leah
