Posts
For the Sake of Personal Expansion
An invitation to return to the blank page
Jun 25, 2024
It was when I started dusting the living room blinds that it really became apparent. I had been engaging in avoidance behavior for weeks but never really called it out as that; I was simply being productive, getting things done. But when dusting entered the picture, my least favorite house chore, I couldn’t deny it any longer—I was seriously avoiding writing.
Committed to the Seeking
Learning to consistently draw near to God
Apr 29, 2024
I looked around me at all the women gathered in this dim worship center, raised hands and eyes closed, some swaying side to side, singing their hearts out, and I felt nothing. I turned my gaze back to the stage and tried to concentrate harder on the lyrics, as if mouthing them might prompt the Holy Spirit to grace me with its presence.
Small Doses of Replenishment
Learning how to create sustainable renewal
Feb 19, 2024
Spring is less than a month away. I can feel it in the air. The temperature rising into the upper 50s. The sound of birds preparing to look for the perfect tree to call home. Walking by a small lake in our neighborhood, I see the ducks and geese have returned to the thawed water. It was still frozen not more than a week ago. The tiniest of buds have begun appearing on the trees in our backyard.
The Courage to Face Ourselves
Thoughts on our capacity for self-reflection
Feb 12, 2024
It was the small mirror that first caught my eye as I approached the table to sit down. It was accompanied by a large light brown paper for coloring and markers. I didn’t know any of the other 15 or so people who signed up for this Poetry Workshop. But it sounded right up my alley and worth giving up every Saturday morning in February for. The theme of the workshop—self-portrait.
Saving Us from Madness
Harmonizing our need for change and routine
Jan 30, 2024
Wake up, eat breakfast, go to work, take a lunch break, finish work, eat dinner, work out, shower, go to sleep. Sprinkle in chores, cleaning, and running errands every other day. We all have our own versions of daily routines. And let’s be honest, they don’t change all that much. There are those rare special-occasion days, or those tragic-news days, or the travel days, but everything in-between is fairly ordinary.
An Underlying Request for Affirmation
Reflections on our obsession with productivity
Jan 23, 2024
Only three weeks into the new year and I’m already exhausted. Could it be the dreary weather, the lack of sunshine and daylight? Or could it be the all-too-familiar “new year’s rush”? That sense of jumping on the bandwagon of creating goals and resolutions and intentions and then trying to stick to them without fail. Wanting to do all the things.
Purpose Behind Every Limitation
The freedom found in obedience to God’s commands
Jan 18, 2024
Walking out of my orthopedic appointment, I felt immediate relief in my left shoulder. The injection was kicking in and I almost cried from joy. I went home and immediately scheduled my prescribed physical therapy for the next six weeks. This was a familiar scenario. Only six years ago I was doing the same thing for my right shoulder. The diagnosis? Bursitis in both cases.
Permission to Create Freely
Seeing writer’s block from a different angle
Jan 10, 2024
I have to say, I don’t always feel like being “self-aware” when I sit down to write. Sometimes I just want the ideas and words to flow without having to go to a deeper place within me. But Victoria argues that making art involves the whole person, all of me. No shortcuts, no sidestepping. This is indeed both a blessing and a curse.
Overflowing with Fresh Seedling
A new year’s ritual of mindful surrender
Jan 01, 2024
January 1st. It carries so much weight. So much pressure and expectation placed on it. Some carried over from last year. The older I’m getting, the less I make new year’s resolutions and instead, think of intentions I have for the year. What mindset do I want to approach the new year with? What energy do I want to bring into it?
Places That Increase Our Holiness
Learning to put away childish things
Sep 04, 2023
I’ve been reflecting on this verse for some time now, especially as I’m nearing my 40s. The instruction is simple enough. But can I be honest? This is something I struggle with. Have for my entire adult life. I have always thought of myself as a child at heart, viewing the world with a childlike naiveté. I’d like to think it’s how God made me.
Inertia of the Soul
Finding ways to resuscitate our deepest desires
Aug 13, 2023
Overstimulated. It’s a word we hear quite often, especially in our social media–heavy, technology-obsessed, devices-galore, insta-everything world. It happens to kids and adults alike, and it’s hard to get away from. We can take social media breaks, go on silent retreats, take a vacation, detox, and meditate, but eventually we find ourselves right back in hyper-stimulation mode.
One Stone at a Time
Binding the disconnected parts of us
Aug 06, 2023
We spotted him while walking around our neighborhood, fixing a neighbor’s front yard steps. My husband approached him to ask about his services, since we were looking for someone to fix our backyard steps. He would be coming by a few days later to give us a quote. I was grateful, a few less phone calls I’d have to make trying to get multiple quotes.
Anchored to the Ground
Feeling at home right where we are
Jul 23, 2023
I was leaving the gym on a Wednesday afternoon, walking to my car in the parking lot when it hit me. That feeling that this is where we belong, where we’re supposed to lay down roots. “This” being the town my husband and I live in. It didn’t last very long, that pleasant, comforting feeling, but it lasted long enough for me to feel reassured in our decision to move here almost two years ago.
Because the World Needs Beauty
Thoughts on creative work and why it matters
Jul 16, 2023
Create anyway. This seems to be a buzzword (or “buzzphrase” rather) at the moment, a phrase I’ve been hearing quite a bit in different creative circles. In fact, there is a book that just came out by that very name. The idea is as it sounds—no matter what is going on in your life, or in the world, go ahead and create beautiful things anyway, even if in the larger scheme of things, they’re not essential.
A Salve on Wounded Hearts
Nurturing our gifts for a greater purpose
Jul 08, 2023
I feel too much. It’s a problem, really. But also, strangely, a gift. One I didn’t ask for. One I question more often than I should. Some days it takes the form of codependency. Other days it shapes into empathy and compassion. And frequently, it manifests as sensitivity. Whatever name I give it, its impact is the same—a heaviness in my chest, a strong desire to cry, a confinement of spirit, a disconnect from the present moment.
The Serenity We Seek
Our inherent desire for transformation
May 28, 2023
My latest TV show obsession is flipping shows—houses, flea market finds, clothing. On a Canadian show called “Hoarder House Flippers,” three teams of house flippers buy abandoned hoarder houses for a low price and turn them into desirable homes to resell for profit. On another show, “Flea Market Flip,” contestants in each episode are given a budget of $500 to hunt for three pieces at a flea market that they then refurbish in the hopes of reselling them for a profit at the same flea market.
A Divine-Filled Practice
Inviting God into the details
May 22, 2023
The fifth guy in one week showed up today to give us a quote. Seems all we’ve been doing lately is getting quotes for different services we need done around the house. Now it’s the front yard gate that needs repairing as well as our driveway, which needs a new seal coat. “Happy homeowning,” one salesman sarcastically said to me on the phone the other day.
Called to Create
Art as a reflection of God’s character
May 14, 2023
Lately writing in and of itself has not felt like enough. In this day and age, it seems to be all about product. I feel an immense pressure to monetize my writing, to package it up into a beautiful box, market it, and sell it. Not just that, but to ensure it stands out among others in order to be valuable. The mere act of writing, of finishing a blog post and publishing it, seems to have lost meaning.
Blossoming Beyond Our Crutches
Tending to our Achilles heels and overcoming fears
May 07, 2023
I watch her as she struggles to wrap the overstuffed burrito, smiling awkwardly. She motions for her coworker to come to her rescue. I’m guessing she’s new, hasn’t gotten the hang of the wrapping part yet. I’m sure it takes a while. This one looks impossible to me, personally, no matter how much training you’ve had, based on the amount of the ingredients. It’s not rocket science.
A Welcome Landing Place
Revisiting the why behind our work
Apr 30, 2023
It’s the last full week of April. This is around the time of year where my motivation to keep going with my goals and resolutions that were set at the beginning of the year begins to take a deep dive. And it doesn’t help that Mercury is in retrograde. The old insidious questions I try hard to push to the back of my mind resurface—what is the point of all this? Why am I wasting my time?