When it comes to gratitude, The Bird School Project has a lot to be thankful for. Among the many grateful thoughts floating through our minds is appreciation for all of you. By "you," we mean students, teachers, and supporters who have donated money, time, or thought to our project. There are many of you out there and if you are reading this you are probably one of them, so thank you.

On a second note of gratitude there is one more group, or should we say Class (Aves), that The Bird School Project is thankful for. You got it: birds! In a sense, that's what this whole project has been about; sharing our gratitude for birds with others. Now, we are challenging you (that's right, all of "you," aforementioned) to share your gratitude for birds with us!

Here's the challenge:

Step 1) This Turkey-day weekend, find a bird in your neighborhood (or whichever neighborhood you are in) that you are grateful for. Identify it! It can be a new bird, or an old homie. If you can take a picture of it, please do so! All the better for sharing!

Step 2) Write why you are thankful for this bird. This can be anything from its beauty to it keeping you on your toes.

Step 3) Share your gratitude with us! Post your bird gratitude on our Facebook page or Instagram #birdgratitude. You can also like and comment on others posts of gratitude.

bonus points: Create a profile on Cornell's ebird.org. Document you observation of a bird in your neighborhood by following the steps to create a checklist for the spot you observed. Share your checklist with us (Darrow Feldstein, or Kevin Condon, we both have profiles)!

You're all awesome.