Time is a funny thing: some days, we say it crawls; some days, it flies. Some days, I open my eyes to stare out at the newly brightened world without any thought of getting up. Right outside my window is the top of the lanai. There’s a mischievous squirrel I’ve named Shadow (This squirrel scares the nuts out of me on a fairly regular basis: my room is on the second floor. Unless he’s in a tree, squirrels are not supposed to be walking in the air. My mind knows he’s not-he’s walking on the roof of the lanai–but when I’m working or writing and then, from seemingly nowhere, a shadow darts across my peripherial sightline, I inevitably jump and think someone’s trying to break into my house in broad daylight) who routinely stands at the window and stares at me for no good reason. Some days, I’ll stare out the window while the day is breaking and let the minutes pass until Shadow races across the lanai. Other days, I wake with my mind whirling with all I have to do, and I am dressed and started on the day before Shadow ever makes it up the side of the lanai to jump scare me. Regardless of which kind of day it is, the one thing that time never does is stop. Whether it crawls or flies, it is passing. Whether I lounge in the bed all day or cram a million things into the waking hours, time is one of the only constants: it remains a steady drumbeat pounding out a rhythm of sunrise, sunset, repeat. And, in each of its beats, it leaves a memory behind.

I’ve been consciously and deliberately seeking the experiences that would give the most vivid memories for decades. Life, right now, seems to be flying by. I recently came across this photo of my girls and I, taken 12 years ago. It is one of my favorites of us, and it does not feel as though a decade has past since it was taken: I remember that year and the things we did and saw and played as though it were yesterday. We stayed as busy as there were hours in the day. We slept outside on trampolines, we made lava pits on the floor out of pillows, we explored every musuem, creek and park within a hundred mile radius.

Today, as they are older, the memories we are making are different… but we still try to include time at the beach, exploring small, local restaurants and taking both big and small trips. We still Chatter Chat about things they are writing, games they’re playing, dreams and fears they have. Today was the 15,838th sunrise of my life and, as I watched the soft colors paint the Florida sky, I thought about how I’m making use of the time today.

I thought of the girls first, and all that we’ve done this year — the challenges, the triumphs, the small setbacks and the two step fowards. At the beginning of last year, I started keeping a list of good things that happened. I knew a lot of them would be small – things like, we went to the ocean today or a reader e-mailed me — and a few would be big – things like, we went to the Bahamas.We went to Europe. Some would be normal things that we take for granted usually like we made homemade bread and it turned out perfectly and some would be normal things that just didn’t feel normal like I got the monthly check for the books today:I am a paid author or that blasted squirrel is kind of cute.Throughout the year, when challenges started to feel big, I’d pull something out of the bowl… sometimes more than a few… and remind myself it’s been a good year. Because good things usually don’t scream look at me like the challenges do. Instead, the good things tend to slide by for the most part.

But when I remember and focus on the good things, it’s like I get a download of strength to power through the challenges. Other than my daughters, finding evidence of God moving in my life, and proof that dreams come true are the two biggest motivators. I treat each day as a treasure hunt in which the goal is to collect as many instances of God and of dreams coming closer as I can. For me, recording the things that I am working on is one way to help me recognize those things…. and, hopefully, to inspire others to keep track of the blessings too. I don’t have many dreams remaining: I dream that my girls cling to their faith, find happiness, and hold confidence in themselves; I dream of planting a seed in one person that ultimately leads to disclosure of abuse and of that person believing that she isn’t really as alone as she thinks she is. And I dream of writing for years to come, of being able to use words to spark meaningful conversations; if I can use my story, and my writing, to point others towards a God I passionately believe still heals, that is the ultimate dream. 

And so… this is why I wanted to share updates about what’s happening in my world – these updates are gold nuggets that I will use throughout 2024 to remind me that no matter what challenges the year brings, regardless of whether time flies or crawls, dreams are real and life is worthwhile.

Some of these updates…

1. While it’s been a lot of work preparing, getting the word out, and leading the HERO workshop, this has been a lifelong dream. To have led this workshop over 2023 and into 2024 to over 500 people so far is more than I ever would have anticipated. When something does better than I expect, it is evidence of God moving. Listen, in the grand scheme of things—very few people know I exist. And I am okay with that because, ultimately, it only takes one. The heart behind this workshop is to say that you matter. Your story matters. And having the chance to facilitate a few hours where one person feels safe enough to share, or has that seed planted… it is a humbling privilege, and I look forward to it every single time. 
   
   The next event is February 29, 2024 from 7-10pm EST. To sign up, you can simply click here to register using my calendar. If you need specific information about what happens at this workshop… let’s chat. I’m happy to share as much detail as you need to feel comfortable. I hope it helps someone feel supported. 
   
2. I have control issues. I’m aware of this and am actively working on letting go a little (singing Frozen right now in my head). To this end, I know leaving comments on the blog isn’t exactly as easy as it could be. Comments have to be approved – because I can’t have anything negative on my site when I’m working so hard to build a community of encouragers. You have to fill out a name and an e-mail — not because I’m going to e-mail or stalk you but because I want to know you’re human before you leave comments on pieces of my heart. Because of these things, I wasn’t sure how successful soliciting comments would be for Chapter Chats, the online book club I thought of. Frankly, I wasn’t sure anyone would join — which is why I offered a free book if you did, and ended up paying postage on 90 paperbacks! So, I have been very encouraged to see comments pop up on each of River’s Rowan‘s discussion boards. This week, we did a Word Cloud together and the prompt was about covenants. I truly, genuinely would love to hear your thoughts – if you’re not reading along with us, that’s okay. My books have a lot of heavy themes in them, and I totally get not wanting to follow along with such themes. But I invite you: check it out and, if a thought jumps to your mind, leave me a comment. I promise I’ll engage right back. It is how we become friends and that community of encouragers is made and, by sharing your thoughts, you are part of my dream come true.
   
3. The new book is underway! Officially have the first two chapters written, and the outline…. we’ll say… 60% completed (this is a major step up: in the last ten years, I’ve not used chapter by chapter outlines. So having any outline ahead of writing harkens back to my early years when I wrote the whole book in outline form first and it makes me all sorts of sentimental). There is a new page for the book here and there’s a page with details on Evariste here and Gaeton here. Writing is my way of sharing the deepest pieces of me—often, pieces I don’t even know I’m ready to write about. While the research for this story has been devastating, I look forward to sharing more about these characters who are so dear to me and examining really defining themes like love and forgiveness.
4. Outside writing, we’ve spent a lot of time at the beach, and have enjoyed making the most of our Disney annual passes. In the quiet spaces of my heart, I miss home in Nashville, but also find myself picking up Floridian habits and enjoying the emphasis on nature here.

Sometimes life flies by; sometimes it crawls. During both periods, I strive to take notice of flowers growing in the cracks of a sidewalk, be cognizant that the day is coming when Chatter Chats with the girls won’t happen daily and prioritize believing in and chasing dreams. I look forward to seeing what else this year holds… and seeing the colors of my 15,839th sunrise.