I logged in here just yesterday, to my old blog companion of over 8 years, to get reacquainted and to play around with adjusting themes, colors, photos, etc. I have some very longstanding friendships that often get placed on the back burner, unintentionally and regrettably, due to time constraints and lack of good planning. My blog is one such friend. We’ve walked through my big milestones together, that’s for sure. Like any authentic friendship, we can pick up where we left off despite time apart. In fact, time apart is sometimes good for us.
I was telling friends last night that if a person were to go back to my initial January 2010 post and read forward, they wouldn’t even have to meet me to know me. It’s all there. I spared you the gory details of the not-so-fairytale stuff and tried my best to give you the highlights of the good stuff… but it’s still all there. I type and then I publish~ outside of editing any spelling mistakes (oh, how I abhor spelling errors!). I don’t change anything I’ve typed because it’s what I wanted to say and why second guess it? It is what it is.
I was chatting with my friends about the possibility of making this more of a thematic blog (which is, by the way, what the experts recommend). Pick your area of expertise or interest and make that the focus of your posts, they say. Here’s the problem with that recommendation, however. I’m not interested in just one thing. I’m certainly not an “expert” in any one thing.. or anything, for that matter.
I want to be able to write about what divorce looks like, what remarriage looks like, what parenting adult kids is like and what it definitely shouldn’t look like, what my dog did that cracked me up, the things grandchildren say and do, what marrying a pastor is like, what being ordained is like, what signing up for a 10k is like when you are relatively sure you can’t run to the end of the driveway without needing a water break, what stupid menopause is like, and what the cure of the symptoms is like (thank you, GOD, for HRT).
I’ve got a lot of random thoughts that some people happen to relate to.
If they can’t relate, they can just laugh with me. I’m cool with that.
So I’ve decided against a ministry blog. There are thousands and many are amazing. I’m keeping the blog about this abundantly blessed, complicated, often hysterical, sometimes heartbreaking, always grateful life I’ve been given. Today, I woke up with this little thought that I want to share with you. What was the single best year of your life?
The year you graduated from college?
The year you married?
The year you landed the big career making position?
I can’t explain why these thoughts land in my brain and take root but they do. So I started thinking about it and there have been some great years in my ever growing collection and there have been some downright sad ones, too…. but I can honestly say that 2018 is shaping up to be my best year. THIS year is the best year of my life and here is why. I’m living MY authentic life. Not a perfect one; not a problem free one; an authentic one.
So I want you to do a mini self examination. What are the obstacles keeping you from living your authentic life?
Can I let you in on a little secret? It always starts with us.
Be blessed!
