Thanksgiving · 5:07am Nov 25th, 2016
Happy thanksgiving everyone. No matter who you are, what you believe in, what you look like, or what you celebrate, thanksgiving is something that i feel can extend beyond any labels, any norms, any judgements, etc. The theme of the holiday is something that everyone can believe in, because it's a time to give thanks and think about what you are thankful for.
Today, for me, was like any other thanksgiving. I went home (where i grew up), my mom and dad's side of the family were both there, its usually the only time my whole family is together, and it was fun. I got to talk to all my cousins, see my parents, sit down and have a few glasses of wine with both my father and uncle, which is always a fun time.
What am i thankful for? It goes without saying... I am incredibly thankful for my family, to have a mother and father who raised me right, to have a father who took risks and chances in order to provide me with a worry free and well off life that i will never EVER take for granted.
But the thing is... that's all easy to say. And saying i'm thankful for my family is usually the default response. While it is very true... i AM very thankful for them... something happened today at the gathering that made me sit back and think a little harder on it.
I was talking to a cousin of mine, and the subject of writing came up. I never mentioned ponies, but i DID talk about how many people watch and read and how long some of my work has become and they asked me, alarmed and right to my face, "how do you manage the pressure?!"
And... i didn't have an answer for her. And it really made me think hard about things from a different perspective.
When everyone was gone... i took a little nostalgia trip through memory lane and went up to my room in the house, the room that i lived in from when i was 7 years old to 25. I sat down on my old bed and i thought hard on the question she asked me, it felt like the answer was right in front of me, but i couldn't quite put the words to it.
Then i glanced to my right at my old bookshelf, still full of old books... and i saw something... something that took me even further down nostalgia road.
This:
And i nearly cried.
Not just because Thomas the Tank Engine was a huge part of my childhood, but it was this book specifically. When i was 13 years old, i came across this book in a shop that sold model trains in a mall that no longer exists today. At first i was excited because hey, it's my childhood, but...
The moment i opened that book my life changed forever. I was... surprised. I had watched the show when i was a little kid, i could recite the lines from most of them by heart, but seeing them in writing was... different. Not only that but they were not the same. These were the original stories written in the 1940's... it was a different time and even though these were meant to be children's stories, they had these subtle themes hidden in that were meant to be serious and at times frightening. (The story when Douglass saves Oliver was meant to be a reference to the holocaust, that was completely removed in the show adaptation) Reading something i initially loved from a completely different perspective, seeing characters i knew and loved in writing form and how they were explored on different levels, looking at how it was all initially written...
People... in that picture above, you are looking at the very thing that influence me to become a writer.
I took a long look at the book tonight, and i even brought it home with me. Why? well... to be honest, i couldn't let go of it, i didn't want to put it down or leave it and just drive back to my apartment. It's now sitting here in my lap as i write this and it's making me think... it's making me think a lot.
Which brings me back to the particular day i came across it on... today... thanksgiving. Seeing this book and thinking over my cousins question about pressure... It made me want to write this blog right now... because i'm thankful for something else, something i feel should be acknowledged because it's become a huge part of my life.
I'm thankful for all of you.
Thats right, whether you are a follower a reader, or a lurker... thank you.
There's a reason i didn't have an answer for my cousin about feeling pressure, it's because i DON'T feel pressure. I'm not worried about disappointing you all, I'm not holding myself to any standards, i'm just writing, and i'm just having fun...
i feel like i have to thank all of you for that, because it's BEEN so much fun. I've had such a blast doing this. the other day, about a month from today, the 4th year mark of me being on this site passed right by and i didn't even notice, this has become something i just do naturally, i left fanfiction.net after 3 years, and i left because i felt like it was time to move on. Here? Hell no, i've never had more fun in my life. There's a reason i answer every comment... there's a reason i take the time to get to know my readers and followers, it's because i WANT to, it's because you are the people who take time out of your lives to read and acknowledge something i put time and effort into, at this point... A LOT of time and effort. But i have no intention of stopping or cutting anything short...
Why? because you you. Plain and simple. I'd be nothing without my followers. It doesn't matter how good people think my writing is or my chapters are, i wouldn't be able to do it without your support.
So... on this day of thanks, it's important to acknowledge not only the things that build you, you family, your friends within reach, but also to be thankful for the other things, the things that happen on the side of your life that make life fun and worth living.
So i am thankful for all of you, for all the support you give me, for all the feedback i receive, and for everyone that has made my experience on this site one i will never forget and one that i know i will keep enjoying. I never thought my little adventure into the world of pony fiction would turn into this big adventure... or that the light blue big doofus of a pony someone asked me to create on a whim would turn into so much more.
And you know what? thinking about all of it just makes me smile.
Thank you everyone, and i hope you had a happy thanksgiving.
D'awwww shucks, man! We're thankful to have you too!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYPONY!!!!!!!!!!
Dude, Thomas the Tank Engine was my SHIT back in the day! XD
I wanna return the thank you actually. You gave all sorts of useful advice on writing, nutrition, working out. All sorts of stuff that I wouldn't have known about if I hadn't read you're work. In fact, you're writing has taken a huge, positive effect on my own.
So, I guess I just want to say that I'm thankful for you and your impact on my life.
Thomas FTW!
...Happy Thanksgiving? Hate to break it to you but Thanksgiving was last month... but I will role with it and Happy Thanksgiving everypony!
4316452 Are you referring to Halloween?
Awww, that's so nice of you! I am very happy that we, the readers and fans of your writing, have made you very happy to be here on this site working away on your pony stories. I hope you have a nice rest of this year!
4316455 thanksgiving was on the 10th of October then we have Halloween on the 31 then we have rememberance day in September so we won't have Thanksgiving till next year!
4316459 Do you live in another country or something? I'm just curious.
media.giphy.com/media/26ufaBRDVgEJVrqak/giphy.gif
4316464 I live in Canada so maybe?
Happy Thanksgiving to you too!!
I'm so glad that you feel the way you do about writing because you make so many people smile and happy with your amazing work and you deserve all the thanks in the world for that
Keep it up man
Glad to hear you had a nice thanksgiving with your family Calm! i'm thankful to have you and i'm glad to have been around for this crazy train of story!
Indeed! We are all thankful for you sharing your amazing talent with us
4316469 Ah, okay. Most of us live in the US, so it's different here.
I don't celebrate it but…Happy Thanksgiving to you too!
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MY. CHILDHOOD. IN. A. BOX.
I'm happy you don't feel any pressure or have any fears of failure, that we've made it nice enough so you feel comfortable. :)
But, I also wanna say, I'm thankful for you and your stories. I see the amount of effort you put in your stories, and that really does inspire me to write more. I've gotten a lot of tips from you (even when it's directed at someone else and I happen to stumble upon it) because, I observe your stories, see you write and try to do the same
and boy do I have a lot to observe. Ending my rant, I just wanna say, thank youDon't forget the stalkers…never forget the stalkers…
wow
happy thanksgiving
We don't celebrate thanksgiving
before I thought it was just a week before Christmas 
(don't ask
) but it sounds really nice
You are so like me that it's spooky.
Calm, this brought tears to my eyes...
Thank you, Calm. For being who you are. 
Happy thanksgiving Calm and everyone!!Thanks for all the amazing stories that you share with us all these years!Best of wishes!!
4316493 Oh Ok
Amen, and Calm, we are all thankful for you, and the time you put into the story... though I may, or might not have a picture idea... something along the lines of what you told me about your favorite train...
As a European I can only say: Happy stuffing stuffed stuff into you face day!
Awww you're such a sweetheart
Well said and I can say I'm thankful that you write because no matter how bad of a day I have, Chapter 25, 43, or 70 can always make me smile and feel better.
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thanks and we are all thankful for you too...
God bless you calm..... or whatever is socially acceptable in today's terms
This year, it was a turkey dinner special at a Dennys in a remote backwater town in central Utah, almost two thousand miles from home, family, and friends.
Still the best thanksgiving I can recall. 2016 has been good.
Finally getting back online after the break, and I can safely say thank you for sharing your stories with us. The last half of 2015 and so far, pretty much all of 2016 has been rough, but discovering the Wonderverse has been a bright spot.
Not with my family, but good for you and yours!
Hey, I'm also a fan of Thomas the Tank Engine!
4347409
i was born and raised on it
It will always have a special place in my heart
4347448 Which was your favorite narrator for the series? Ringo Starr or George Carlin? I like both of them, but Carlin was specialized in accents, like when ever he spoke for Donald and Douglas.
4347539
I have a soft spot for Ringo, but Carlin was definitely my favorite.