{virtual coffee} 18

I'm sitting down to my first pumpkin spice coffee of the season. There's plenty more, and if you were really here, I'd be more than happy to share... unlike I might be in February when I've entered my holiday-flavor-hoarding-mode.   There is no hint of fall in the air, but after fifteen Florida Septembers, I know better than to be expecting the crisp, clean air days yet.  But October is coming, and in a few weeks Mother Nature might start teasing us with a few of those beautiful days. 

If we were really meeting for coffee today, I might sit and listen more than chat... but I'd be sure to share my excitement over last week's homecoming. In pictures.

I love when she gets all dressed up... and I love that she can get all dressed up and still look like who she really is.  I think it is such a gift to have no fancy illusions of who you want to be, and just be okay with who you are.   I try to take in the lessons she lives and breathes...

If we were really meeting for coffee, I'd definitely ask you Have you read Grace for the Good Girl?  I finished it and then started right back at the beginning.  Yes, I loved it that much.  Reading Emily's words are like reading into a mirror.  As I read, I shredded my Amazon packing slip so that I could mark the words that struck my heart. Words like "My idea of who I should be is at war with who I am. I want to be perfect in every situation.  I just do.  I want to know what to do.  I want to know how to do it right.  And I want to do it.All.By.My.Big.Self."  Uh... hello.  And how about this... "I stay strong when I feel weak, and I fake happy when I want to cry because my ideal image has everything to do with put together and nothing to do with falling apart."  And so you know that Emily shares the Grace?  "You are not responsible to have it all together.  You are free to respond to the One who holds all things in His hands.  You do not have to live up to impossible expectations. You are free to wait expectantly on Jesus, the One who is both author and perfecter of your faith."  As I got the the end, and as I am beginning again, I find myself tearing those slips of paper in half so I can mark one more passage.  I really need to get out a highlighter. 

If we were really meeting for coffee today, I'd thank you for the prayers.  Yes, it has been a tough couple of weeks, but I am doing okay.  Better.  I have given up a few volunteer commitments... because even though I enjoy volunteering, there comes a breaking point.  A time when you realize that your volunteer time is taking you away from the very people you are supporting.  And even if you still have the time to spend, the energy needed to participate in your family is long gone.  I've been right there and a little beyond.  But day by day I am finding myself again... making rest, and breathing, a priority. 

If we were really meeting for coffee today, I'd be thrilled...