LIFE IN BLOOM

Learning How to Flourish in God's Grace

Tag Archives: Life


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Friday Favorites- Intangibles

I decided to start doing a weekly series on my favorites because I felt that it would help me be reminded of all of the things I have in my life that I’m grateful for. Each Friday, will have a different “theme” for my favorites. I’ll start this week with “intangibles”.

While “intangible” is defined as something that is “unable to to be touched or grasped; not having physical presence” (courtesy of Dictionary.com), I’m extending that definition to include things that cannot be purchased. It’s my blog. I can do that. And without further ado…

  1. Family- I think my family is comprised of the best people God could have given me. They keep it real, they love me, they support me, and they let me be me. I have yet to discover the limits of their love for me, and quite frankly, I don’t think it exists.
  2. Faith- Perhaps this should have been first. Oh well. My faith is the glue that holds me together. When all fails, I can rest in my faith.
  3. Hugs- I don’t know that I was always a hugger, but I have definitely become one. As a teacher, I give out at least 7 hugs a day. Sometimes the kids need it. Sometimes I need it. Many a hug has brightened my day.
  4. Silence- I enjoy silence and being alone with my thoughts. I’m a processer by nature, so I enjoy having time to decipher what I think and feel and why I think and feel a certain way. So much of my day is spent in noise and conversation that by the end of the day, I’m grateful for an opportunity to just “be”.
  5. Love- There aren’t enough words to describe this feeling. Life is incomplete without love.  And in the words of the old hymn, “…when nothing else could help, love lifted me…”
  6. Friends- I think that I have the best ones, but I’m obviously biased. If you don’t have people in your life that are there for you through whatever and who care enough to tell you the truth, life can be really hard.

So that wraps it up for my first round of Friday Favorites. Until next time…


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Unpacking.

I hate unpacking. I’ve been known to let a suitcase remain untouched (with the exception of essential items) for at least a week following a trip. The unpacking process, to me, is draining and time consuming.

It’s amazing what we carry. It seems nearly impossible for me to return home with the exact same things I left with. I almost always have MORE than what I left home with. Sometimes that’s my fault. Sometimes it’s because of who or what I’ve come in contact with.

We all carry stuff. Whether we know it or not, we all have baggage. Part of the process has forced me to examine and unpack that baggage. I recently wrote about feeling exposed, based off of a conversation I had with my best friend. Lucky for me (slight sarcasm), that same best friend and I had another conversation recently that really got me thinking about the baggage I carry.

As I was expressing my feelings and thoughts about a situation, I found myself explaining away (really justifying) why I felt the way I did and how I arrived at this point. Being the best friend that they are, they kindly informed me that all of how I felt and how I arrived at this point (while understandable) was the result of baggage I carry. And then, as they always do, they challenged me to deal with it.

And so I am.

It’s cool and it’s difficult, all at the same time. I have moments where I’m totally grateful for an experience, no matter how horrible it was because it forced me to learn and grow. I also have moments where I struggle with the effects of different experiences. Life is real. Life is hard. Life is real hard. I know that I’ve been overwhelmingly blessed because God has carried me over, through, and around many situations that could have been my breaking point.

As I start this unpacking process, I also feel praise. I’m still here. There were things that were meant for my death, but God used it for my development. I truly owe Him every piece of my life.

Perhaps unpacking isn’t so bad after all.

“…you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good…” -Genesis 50:20