Mary Poppins Wasn't Perfect

"There's no replacement for what happens when we make something with our own hands, directed by our own senses, motivated by our own love for the people we're serving." It's cold in DC. REALLY cold. And I love it. After a fantastic ski trip weekend to West Virginia, I came back to DC and prepared for the blizzard they were calling for. Several coworkers were in town from Tallahassee for work meetings and because of the storm- were stranded and unable to get out on time. Which means I had the opportunity to have Sarah over to my apartment for homemade soup. I didn't need to rush home to clean, there was no need to fret about what was or was not in my fridge, I just was able to get what I needed and prepare a meal for a dear friend. Sarah, thanks for sharing a meal with me. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to "make something with my own hands, motivated by my love for YOU, the person I was serving."

DC survived one year with me. Well done, DC. A year ago this weekend I loaded up my car with my journals and made the drive to DC. You don't need some sappy one year reflection type of post, so I'll just leave it at that. Congratuations, DC, on putting up with me for a year. Good job.

An end-of-year tradition of mine for the last 9 years or so has been to read through my journals from the year that is coming to a close. And what starts off as just reading one year turns into reading back through multiple years of journal entries. It's one of my favorite days of the year. I love reading all that has happened and being able to see the growth and change that I've encountered. This is another reason I am so grateful  my journals survived the fire of 2012. A couple of weeks before the fire, I'd written in my journal: I will look back on this year (2012) as the year that God overwhelmed me. And even after the fire- I felt that was true. Completely overwhelmed. In a good way. The outpouring of people's generosity after the fire sealed the deal. What an overwhelming year. With work, with relationships, with family, with kindness. An overwhelming year. Wrapping up 2013, I'd say this has been a year of great loss. While the fire may have happened in ...