Remember how much everyone couldn't wait for 2016 to be over? I saved a cartoon on my phone the day after Christmas last year that summed it up perfectly. The cartoonist compared the year to a party guest who refuses to leave, illustrating it as a big round ball with a face, hands and feet labeled “2016,” standing in a room motionless. The party host says to the year/ball: “Whew! Look how late it is! It's 9 p.m. How time flied. We should probably call it a night. Since it's 9 p.m. and all.” Silence. Then, “Please get the f$*k out of my house.”

After a shocking upset of a presidential election, multiple mass shootings including the worst one we had ever seen at the time, and news of one celebrity death after another, we were all ready for a fresh start.

Sadly, 2017 hasn't been much better. Our news feeds have been filled with alerts about chaos in Washington, racism-fueled incidents and terrorist attacks. Hurricanes caused catastrophic damage in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. We experienced an even bigger mass shooting. Oh and to top it off, there was the Harvey Weinstein scandal, which led more women to come out of the woodworks and accuse more public figures – Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K. and Roy Moore, to name just a few – of repulsive sexual misconduct.

And for me personally, 2017 has been my most challenging year yet, as I found myself turning 34, suddenly single again and moving back to my home town to start over in many ways. Sometimes I wish that big, round pesky party guest would roll into my apartment and never leave.

But when we focus on all the negative things happening in our lives and in the world around us, we become just that – negative – and overlook all the blessings we shouldn't take for granted. Luckily, tragedy can have a silver lining. One of the biggest lessons I've learned this year is that when we feel like all hope is lost and our life has truly hit rock bottom, we find strength inside us that we didn't know existed. We learn ways to create happiness and contentment from within, instead of basing those feelings on events or actions we have no control over.

So with Thanksgiving just a few days away, let's try to emulate Oprah Winfrey, who is known for focusing on the good in life to create more of it, and encourages others to do the same. In her book “What I Know for Sure,” she reminded fans, “Being grateful all the time isn't easy. But it's when you least feel thankful that you are most in need of what gratitude can give you: Perspective.”

Even if it's just for a short time, let's take a break from complaining and gossiping, taking part in envious social-media stalking and getting sucked into angry comment threads online, and contemplate the things we're grateful for. Here are a few of mine.

First, I'm thankful to be part of an industry that feels like a big family. Like many people who have found success in the credit union industry, I didn't originally set out to get involved in the movement. But one career move led to another and I landed where I am today, and instead of going through the motions while feeling out of place, I've embraced my role. So many credit union professionals are truly motivated and passionate about what they do, and one of my favorite parts of my job is having the opportunity to showcase their stories. Last week, one of the young professionals featured in our Trailblazers 40 Below issue proudly shared our article on LinkedIn, and it felt great to know I had made a positive impact on someone's professional life.

I'm thankful for the dedicated and seriously talented reporters at CU Times – Peter Strozniak, David Baumann, Roy Urrico, Tina Orem, Tahira Hayes and Jim DuPlessis. They know what the heck they're doing and their ability to take initiative and keep the news flowing has made my life easier. And of course, I'm thankful for our executive editor, Michael Ogden. Here's just one reason why he rocks: Up until this year, I vowed I'd never speak in public or appear on camera for anything work-related – it was too terrifying. But thanks to his encouragement, I've been making videos of myself interviewing big names in the industry and posting them online, and having a blast doing it.

I'm also thankful to see that the credit union industry is filled with fighters. We're facing some challenges right now – changing regulations, competition from alternative financial services providers that seem to know exactly what consumers want, and even a general lack of awareness among consumers about what credit unions do – but the industry's leaders aren't rolling over and playing dead. They're innovating, coming up with new ways to meet modern consumers' needs, and determined to keep growing membership.

Speaking of fighters, I couldn't write a column about what I'm thankful for without mentioning my French grandmother, who turned 100 years old this past week. You'd never guess her age – she dresses up every day with makeup and jewelry, engages in lively conversation with everyone she meets, socializes with a French-speaking group every Sunday and loves eating oysters. While celebrating with family last weekend, she reminded me once again to enjoy life no matter the circumstances and never give up.

Whether you lost someone you loved in 2017 due to death or the breakup of a relationship, lost your job or didn't get the promotion you hoped for, or suffered a health crisis – or even if everything turned out great for you this year – we can all use a dose of gratitude. To quote Oprah again, it's “the quickest, easiest, most powerful way to effect change in your life.”