My most recent article is up at Weavings blog–a reflection on my time in Meteora, Greece, and what it taught me about relationship with God. Meteora is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, and the monasteries that sit on the tops of mountains have been a reflection, for me, of what it means to seek God.
I’d love for you to click over to Weavings and join me there!
Things have been a little quieter around here, in large part because I’m back to teaching. But they’re also quieter because I’ve intentionally pulled back a bit. I’ve realized, over the last month, that my heart simply needs more time away from the screen, and even from the words that I love so much. More time to rest, more time to think, more time to journal, more time to pray. I need more time with my husband, I need more time with my little girl, I need more time with the women who hold up my arms as a new mom and are in these beautiful and difficult trenches with me.
I have been feeling soul-tired lately, and when that happens its time to get back to the basics: Jesus, family, friends, sleep. As a chronic over-achiever, I would like to think that I can push through anything, but that’s not the case.
And, so, I am slowing in the ways that I can. And I am opening up these soul-tired places in me to my friends. I am sharing my life with them so that they can speak truth, offer encouragement, and point me to Jesus. These are the things we have been doing for each other for years; lately, though, I find I am more on the receiving end than usual. And that’s ok. We all have seasons where we need others to offer their strength to us. I’m grateful.
My real-life friends are central in this journey I am living. But next week, I am also thankful that I get to go and make some new friends–and turn online friends into real-life friends. I’m headed to the Influence Conference, which focuses on keeping Jesus at the center of our online lives–something so beautiful and so necessary.
For those women who I will meet there, we are sharing a link-up. So here’s a bit about me: I’m a wife, mom, pastor’s wife, and college instructor. I was in school for most of my life as a student, and now I’m still in school–but on the other side of the classroom. I teach creative writing and creative nonfiction courses to college students, and I love it. I also write for multiple publications and love speaking to groups of women. My husband is my best friend and February will mark 10 years of dating (we’ve been married for 8+ of those years). I hope we have a good 60+ years left together! Our daughter, Ella, was born on our seventh anniversary and she is a delight!
I’m very much looking forward to the Strategy classes, and you’ll rarely find me without a cardigan (I get cold easily…and I’m a teacher. Ha!).
I’d love to meet you online as we prepare for #influenceconf, and I’m so looking forward to giving you a hug in person next week! Here’s to making much of Jesus!
Another “Flashback Friday” this week–this time to an article I wrote for RELEVANT entitled “Five Commandments About Money.” I wrote it when we were newlyweds and just figuring out how to handle our own money. It’s not perfect, but the sentiments in the article are still, I think, important!
I hope you enjoy it!
Today, I wanted to offer a little “Flashback Friday” and share a piece I wrote for RELEVANT several years ago, entitled “The Dishwasher Blues.” Although we have moved since I wrote this (and we do have a dishwasher now!), the sentiments here are the same. I can often look at what I don’t have rather than what I do have. But the truth is that God has given us all that we need–even if it’s not what my neighbor has.
I hope this piece encourages you!
Hop on over to Darling Magazine to read my most recent piece for them about the benefit of a writing group.
If you are a writer, or if you’re interested in writing, this article has some practical tips for how to start your own group if there aren’t any in your area.
Write on, friends!
One of the prompts that I give to my students in my Creative Writing course is to “spill their bag.” I frame it more eloquently (this is academia, after all), but the gist of the prompt is this this:
Rummage through your backpack (or purse, or briefcase, or pocket). What object do you find there that you would be hard-pressed to live without? Why does that object matter? Think beyond the obvious.
For example, you might have a hard time going long without your driver’s license, but beyond the surface-level illegality of driving without it, what else does that piece of plastic say about you? And what doesn’t it say about you? And why do those things matter?
Or, why have you been carrying around that ticket stub for five years? Why was that concert so meaningful and what did it birth in you that keeps you clinging to the two inches of paper?
Or, why don’t you ever go anywhere without gum?
Or, what is behind that door that those keys open?
You get the idea. We live in a material world, and although there is so much more to existence than the material stuff we surround ourselves with, the stuff matters because of how it impacts our lives. Taking some time to reflect on how we relate to the things we carry on our bodies can tell us a lot–and open some interesting avenues for writing further.
And in the spirit of #WritingWednesdays, here is my response:
Truvia. A sugar substitute. It seems ridiculous, really, that I would choose this as something I’d be hard-pressed to live without. It’s not that I couldn’t live without it, it’s just that I have an affection for the plant-based sweetener that far outweighs its surface-level packaging.
I’m easily tethered to caffeine; it’s an unfortunate but normal reality for me. When I was pregnant with Ella, I weaned myself down to being caffeine-free. But since her birth, I have had a cup of coffee or tea nearly every morning. I was hopeful that I wouldn’t jump back on the caffeine bandwagon, but after weeks and weeks of interrupted sleep, I reached for the coffee again. I’m back to a cup every morning. And although it’s just one cup, it’s nonnegotiable. Because I’m the woman who gets a headache–a pounding, all-encompassing, near-migraine level headache–if I forget to have that cup of coffee in the morning. I don’t drink coffee black, so Truvia helps me drink that black liquid that staves off the pain.
Headaches have long been the norm for me, and not just because of caffeine–or the lack of it. I have had horrible headaches for years. I’ve taken pills, I’ve taken supplements, I’ve even been to the Diamond Headache Clinic in Chicago, where doctors do nothing all day but treat people with headaches and migraine. Some seasons have been worse than others, but after having Ella, my headaches came back with such power and consistency that I was in intense pain most days of the week. It was a good week when I had headaches only 3-4 days a week instead of 6-7. I received physical therapy, went to chiropractic care, took medication, made diet changes–you name it, I’ve probably tried it. And although I still have occasional headaches, you know one of the biggest things that has helped me?
Truvia.
Well, not Truvia itself–it’s no wonderdrug–but replacing my other sweetener with Truvia has cut out a lot of headaches for me. (Too much sugar isn’t good for me either, thus the use of sweetener.) The sweetener I had been putting in my coffee had been ricocheting in my brain and causing horrible headaches. Truvia doesn’t. And so, every morning now, I turn on the coffee maker, pull out one of those little green and white packets, and drink up.
I would also like to take my wallet and my checkbook with me from my purse, but if I only had to take one thing, the coffee has to come first–can I get an amen?
*This sounds like a commercial. It’s not. I wish Truvia would give me free stuff, but they haven’t. They don’t even know I exist.
As a writing aside: The teacher in me wishes to note that I didn’t start out thinking that I would write a bit about my journey with headaches when I considered what I had in my purse. But when you take an unexpected path in writing, follow it!
So, your turn! Spill your bag and share–what would you be hard-pressed to live without? Link up below and share your thoughts! You are also welcome to post any link that relates to writing from your blog, as well.
If you post on Facebook or Instagram, make sure to use #WritingWednesdays so that we can find one another. And if you have questions, ideas, or prompts that you would like to share for future #WritingWednesdays, please leave a comment (above at the top of the post). Invite your writing friends to join the conversation!
