The power of harnessing and taking charge of perspective has become something of a theme in my life over the last several years, in part because these last years have been so eventful for me. Now, with Thanksgiving just around the corner and the turn of a new year hovering on the horizon, I'm feeling introspective, so I thought today would be a great time to reflect on the last year of my life, with special emphasis on gratitude for change.
At this time last year, I was exhausted, and I felt more defeated than I ever had in my life. I would joke that if I had one, it broke in 2023 - but there was more truth in that joke than most people realized.
In February, I had a minor cancer scare, in March I started a new ministry class just in time for my car to start breaking down constantly, and by April I had spent well over $1500 dollars and my car still wasn't running well. In May, my oldest daughter lost her ability to walk and went on to spend nearly six months in a wheelchair, working constantly to strengthen and regain the use of her legs.
Over the course of that summer, our washer broke, two televisions died, and my elderly dog was almost always sick or mysteriously injured. He was covered in bald spots, losing his fur in patches - with no discernable reason. By September, I had spent almost $3500 on my car (which still wasn't doing well), graduated from my ministry class, racked up some debt, relaunched my writing career, and watched my beautiful nineteen-year-old daughter set her mission dreams aside to focus on learning to walk again.
In October, my already shaky marriage completely imploded. I walked into the holiday season under the weight of a looming divorce, once again a single mom, and completely shaken in every way. People I had always thought would show up for me...didn't. And to put a little icing on the crap cake that was 2023, I spent the entire year battling the crippling pain of a frozen shoulder because I didn't have the time or the emotional energy to spend on my healthcare.
And yet, as difficult as last year was, I look back on it now with a surprising sense of gratitude, not for the hardships themselves but for the lessons they taught me, the ways they forced me to grow, and the strength I found within myself and my faith. Even in the chaos of 2023, there were glimmers of grace - moments that reminded me I wasn’t alone, and people who showed up when I needed them most. Those trials set the stage for changes that made 2024 a season of rebuilding myself and rediscovering hope to embrace healing, and start moving forward. Again.
This year, there's more peace in my life than ever before, despite stretches of time that felt like constant chaos. My car mysteriously seems to have gotten better - not that it's suddenly super-reliable, but it hasn't broken down in thirteen months, so that feels like a win. My dog mysteriously got better for a while too, and he enjoyed the last nine months of his life in fine health and great peace before his fourteen-year service to my family ended in July. Nothing else has broken, and my oldest daughter is thriving with new energy, a new job, and new motivation for her life. My younger daughter has grown in leaps and bounds despite the limitations of her autism.
I am almost completely debt-free, my new book is available for preorder, my next new book is nearly complete, and my shoulder is healed. And while there were people who didn't show up for me in 2023, there were several who did. Those same people have been the ones to cheer me on and celebrate with me this year. The ones who coached me when I struggled, upheld me when I was exhausted, and grew beside me as I processed the contrasts between my life then and my life now.
They're the people who helped me build the foundation of faith and excitement behind my writing. The ones who lend me their courage, value my strength, and always have my back.
Focusing on the blessings and lessons of the past year makes me so much more appreciative of how much my life has shifted. The thing is, there is no harvest without first planting the seeds of intentional work - setting goals, staying flexible, and taking each next step one at a time. So with that metaphor in mind and Thanksgiving around the corner, here's my pre-holiday harvest, in the form of a quarterly goals update.
The season is changing, and 2024 is winding to a close, but I'll never forget the lessons I learned or how powerful gratitude was in shaping my perspectives and carrying me through this year. Life isn't always easy but no matter how hard it gets, remember that you always have the power to nurture seeds of hope and celebrate small victories. Carry those hard lessons forward. Let them change you - because in the courage to change, you find the seeds of possibility that allow you to embrace growth, honor your journey, and always...
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