Making New Memories

 Happy December 💝!! Wow! We have made it to the last month of the year. Praise God for that!! I am so grateful for all God has done and is doing😊!! I'm thankful for every new opportunity, connection and adventure this year. I've enjoyed making new memories. I've learned to appreciate all the memories with my people. My house is full of photo albums, which I love it  and I am so grateful for💗!! At the end of November, I had the wonderful opportunity to make more new memories, which I want to share here with you today. My first new memory came the day before Thanksgiving. I was able to volunteer for the first time at the Operation Christmas Child processing center in Maryland with my friend Amy. It was an amazing experience! I felt the love and joy when I was greeted at the doors to check in😊. It was opening day at the building, and it was an exciting time! Once inside, you worked on an assembly line as boxes of packed shoeboxes came rolling down the conveyor belt the whole time. It was really neat to see! At each assembly line, people had different jobs to perform, such as inspecting, taping, scanning and putting shoeboxes in bigger boxes. There was a job for everyone! I was shown how to do every job by one of my team leaders, which was neat! On my team, I pre-inspected and inspected, which I loved 💗. It was great to work with my team and glance around to see everyone else busy at work also! Every hour or so, we stopped and watched a video about Operation Christmas Child and prayed over the shoeboxes. That was powerful! Christian music was playing in the background the whole time! I truly felt like an elf in Santa's workshop 😊. It won't be my last time visiting there. Overall, it was such a wonderful experience as I loved every minute of making new memories 💝!! Volunteering alongside my friend made it even better! We topped the evening off by eating at Panda Express. That was my first time eating there and I enjoyed 😊. On Thanksgiving Day, I helped Amy deliver Meals on Wheels to local residents. That was my first time helping and it was a joy to visit and see the residents. They were so appreciative and I was grateful I could see them! It truly made me be even more grateful for who and what I have! Then, on Thanksgiving evening, my brother and I went to Friendsgiving dinner hosted by my friend. That was a first for me and I enjoyed it! More new memories were made and I'm grateful for it 💗. Family and friends mean the world to me and I'm thankful for the new memories I was able to make with them. As we are in this last month of the year, I want to encourage you to keep making new memories 😊. It may be serving in your community or church. It may be visiting a new place or restaurant. It may be enjoying moments with your people and having new adventures. It doesn't have to be big. New memories are made in the big and small moments of life. Be thankful for all the past good memories you have as you look ahead to make room for new ones. May this new month be your best one yet! Love and blessings to all 💗