Traveling Thoughts

Words carry unbelievable power. Words have the unique ability to help, to bring joy, to encourage, to destroy, to cause pain, to shame, or to humble. Our words matter. This not only applies to the words we speak to others, but what we say to ourselves. I strongly believe that we can be our own worst critic and say things to ourselves that we would NEVER dream to say (or think about) to other people.   Knowing my tendency to listen to my inner critic and leaning into the idea of living a purposeful and meaningful life, ( check out the first part of the blog here ) I decided at the end of 2013 to select a POSITIVE word to live into in the coming year. That started a chain reaction of going year to year over the last 5 years as a way live a meaningful story and a practice I plan to continue.  My inspiration in sharing these past words and the word for 2019, comes from a graphic artist friend, Adam Cassidy . Adam created a logo for the Kettering  Before...

As each year comes to a close and we anticipate what is in store for the new year, I have found this period of "in-between" to be a sacred time of reflection.  Looking back to the end of 2013, I was ready to move on and for the year to be over (anyone else experience this some years?). It was a year of tragedy, loss, and grief with the passing of two people I deeply love only weeks apart. I spent the rest of the year reeling trying to make sense of it. For the first time, I grasped how finite life is and felt a deep drive to live my story in a meaningful way. One of the reflections I wrote down during this period was,  “Living an intentional life with purpose and direction isn’t something we naturally do. That part takes practice, commitment, and discipline.”  At the end of 2013, I wasn’t happy with what word I would use to describe my year. While thinking about this, I decided I wanted to start tangibly living out the quote above by choosing a word or ph...

Outlook at Rising Park in Lancaster The allure of Columbus has been stirring in me since the first time I visited Easton as a senior in high school. It only grew stronger as I went through seminary at Methodist Theological School in Ohio . Thanks to my seminary education, I was able to explore the Southside of Columbus with the Church for All People , met up with many friends and classmates all around the city, and visited different places of worship thanks to an Interfaith exploration class. During this time, I always said “one day I’m going to live in Columbus.” Viola – that “one day” became a reality for two years. While the last two years in ministry was one for the books, so was my time in Columbus. Work hard, play hard. The balance is needed and over the last year, I made it a priority. Whether you live in Columbus or find yourself visiting, here is a list of some of the BEST things this city has to offer:   Apple picking at Lynd’s Fruit Farms ...

“So what are you going to do with all your free time now?” A question a good friend asked after I told her that I turned in my last paper completing my seminary journey. It was a similar question I started asking myself this spring. I am a list person. I am driven by creating and meeting goals. I even make lists in my sleep. Seriously. Fewer things in life give me more pleasure than crossing off something from a to do list. So on a road trip to the Foothills of Ohio with a friend this spring, I made a list of 30 things I wanted to “check off” before December 2017. Why the December 2017 timeline? Well, part of creating goals is to have a time line for when you will complete them. This isn’t a bucket list of things I want to do before I die. It is a list of things that work to live out a meaningful life and story. Looking through the list, I can’t even begin to imagine what kind of stories I will be able to share and people I will meet along the way. I think that’s what is so ...