Once upon a time, on a street in the south side of Little Rock, there lived a little girl. For some reason, she had a profound love and fascination with pictures. Not just any pictures. Pictures of her family. Pictures of her childhood. Pictures of the years gone by. She would sit and pour through the family photo albums. These were the days before the internet. These were the days before iPads and tablets. So this sweet little girl found a myriad of activities to keep her occupied that did not involve technology. In case you hadn’t guessed, I was that little girl. And although technology has greatly advanced and…

I am so hard on myself. Quite often, I sit and hesitate to push the “publish” button on a blog because it is not quite right. The words do not necessarily convey my emotions the way that I want them to. Or the blog is not long enough. The harsh criticism of myself is not only reserved for blogging. I carry it into my professional life and personal life. All aspects of my life. I am a nitpicker. An unpaid professional flaw finder. While I do not go around pointing out all the flaws that I see in work that I have done or interactions that I have had, I…

The crazy thing about trauma is that quite often it takes a long time for you to start acknowledging the effects. For years, I had symptoms and signs of my trauma, but I brushed it off. I chose to not acknowledge those signs for several reasons. For starters, I was a church girl. And there was nothing wrong with me that the good Lord could not fix. I could pray it away. Or maybe the fault did not lie with the trauma. Maybe the fault lies with me. I was not forgiving enough. I was not loving enough. I just was not walking out my Christian life the way that…

I am grateful that God continues to speak to me. No matter where I go, He is there. I visited a different church this Sunday. Can I be honest with you? I do not like missing Sundays at my church home. It can be hit or miss at different churches, and the way my life is set up……I NEED for it to be a hit every time. Nevertheless, I ventured out. The church opened up with scripture from the Old Testament and then New Testament, and I instantly knew that I was in the right place at the right time. The Old Testament reading was Proverbs 3:5-6 says “Trust in…

Faith is the substance of things hoped for. The evidence of things not seen. Lord knows that I have had some seasons where my faith was lacking. I did not have much hope. There were too many things unseen. If you had asked me what kept me going…if you wondered what I was holding on to…it could all be summed up with a mustard seed. An almost microscopic portion of faith. It was not much. But it was also all that I needed to make it another second, another minute, another hour, another day. I am not naïve. I do not believe that there will not ever be another time…

I’m goofy. As a general rule, it does not take much to make me laugh or smile. I get joy out of the simplest thing. This fact has served me well in my career. Kids are adventurous and inquisitive. They are opinionated and carefree. And they are also hilarious. I went through a looooong season where I laughed occasionally. The haha’s were not bubbling to the surface as readily. The smiles were there but few and far between. My tickle box was only tickled every now and then. But this year…this year has seen a return of my always-ready laughter. And it’s not that this year has been problem-free. I…

November rolled in with cooler temperatures. My fall porch decorations were pulled out of storage and planning for Thanksgiving ramped into full gear. Another fall in full swing. Wasn’t it just January? How did this year go by so quickly???? Time waits for no one. Which can cause issues for a planner like myself. I realize that time is precious, and I want to make the best use of my time. Now, it is certainly healthy and appropriate to plan for the future. But my constant need to know what’s next has caused me some big anxiety. I fret and I worry. I worry and I fret. Thankfully, the good…

Well, well, well. What do we have here? It’s me. I’m here. November has traditionally been a month that I take time out to share with you just some of the things that I am grateful for. A time for reflection. A time to take a pause and focus on the goodness of God. Even if I am tired. Even if I am busy. Even if I feel that I do not have the time. And right now…especially right now, I just do not feel that I have the time. I am juggling ALL of the things and wondering how to not drop one.  And while I am talented in…