Thus Far

  I’ve been praying for something for a long time. Original Photo by  Aaron Burden  on  Unsplash Well, I’ve been praying for a lot of things actually. A lot of the same prayers cycled and recycled depending on urgency for the past several years. At first, it was a simple “Lord, I ask that You would make a way for x to happen, so that I would be able to do y . Thank You so much, Amen. 😊 ” And I’d go about my day, believing things would start to happen. But the more I prayed, the farther away my requests became. It went from praying for a natural path to these things to daily begging God for a miracle—because no way could I  see any of this working out without one. I felt like I’d put in an application at the Office of Miracles, complete with my resume, measure of faith, time spent in prayer, good works performed, etc. To be frank, I felt like I qualified for a miracle. I stood kinda twiddling my thumbs as the Angel at the desk put on his spectacles and glanced over my paperwork (

Technically, I finished the first one at the very end of 2022… but it was after Christmas, so it feels close enough to 2023 to me. 😉 This was such a beautiful, atmospheric story. The writing made it feel like a fairytale, that gossamer dreamscape of not-quite real, like the story is whispered on a winter night as the waves lull you to sleep. The characters all had such beautiful, intricate backstories, and with so many different pieces moving, I was always half-questioning what was real and what was a story within the story.  My one issue with that is that the book is pretty slow moving, so even though I would be engaged while reading it, I could easily put the book down and not come back for a couple of days. I wanted to know how everything came together, but there wasn't an urgency of need to know. Also, since we were engaging with so many different stories at once, I was unsure how—if at all—all of those pieces would come together. But those concerns were assuaged by th

Picture Credit Recommended Listening 6:20 : My phone chimes, a gentle melody with a light buzzing—it’s the vibrating that shakes me awake. I turn quickly to stop the sound before it wakes my roommates (aka sisters), and then I lay for a few minutes, enjoying the cozy morning coolness under soft, sherpa blankets. It takes a little time to coax the sleep from my limbs and my body from the bed, but eventually, I make my way up. I pad across the room and fetch a water bottle, my Bible, notebook, and pencils from their place on my mantel. Wrapped in my favorite hoodie, I crawl back under the covers, arrange my pillows into a comfortable chair, and then open God’s Word to have some Just Us Time before the full day begins. I finished the book of Micah earlier this month (the prophets’ books are always so fascinating), and I think I have a new favorite verse from it. Picture Credit I turned that picture into my laptop background to keep that reminder close over these next few weeks. 🥰 7

It’s been a long time since the holidays have looked like they used to, hasn’t it? I found myself in the days after Christmas angry, and sad, and depressed. I had spent time with family. I had received beautiful gifts for which I am grateful. I’d had a couple of days off work and some time to just sit with a cup of salted caramel hot cocoa watching my favorite films and filmmakers online. It sounded so idyllic and, for a few moments, felt that way... and yet there is and was  so much in my life that is not as I thought it would be. There are real problems hanging over my everyday that stir up anxiety and threaten my future. There are obstacles that refused to budge and kept me away from other loved ones this year. There are dreams I’ve been gripping to my chest and toiling at day after day for over a decade—and yet it feels like not an inch of progress has been made since day one. I had been looking for wonder and magic to make up for all the letdowns and pain, and I did as much as