So many beautiful and challenging changes are happening in my life. Here is a post I shared to a limited audience on social media and I will update you here as well.
Our family is changing shape, with lots of love and intentionality. Today Eddie left for a 15 month assignment. We are going to keep loving our family as friends and parenting partners, but our dynamic is shifting. I appreciate him so much. I love him so much. AND our relationship has been better since we've created distance and that will remain. Muriel is moving away to college (not far, but it's a shift). I came home today a little hesitant, a little bit grieving, and a little bit ready to embrace this next phase.
The weather in Pensacola is not hot tonight. It's lovely. I looked in the mirror and I actually was startled at how positive I felt about what I saw. Instead of a critical voice, which is so common for women, I actually heard the words come out of my mouth: "You're beautiful." A few dear friends have said that to me lately, but overalI I haven't heard those words in a very very long time. Thank you, me. I just needed some space to breathe.
Sometimes we just need to witness ourselves. I love that people have the invitation to love each other in a new way when the old ways don't fit. I'm grateful. 🌱 These kids have it SO good. We've both done messy before. That's just not who we want to be.
I'm grateful to those who have walked this journey with me, however difficult. I still plan to graduate with my doctorate in May and there's lots of fun things that will happen before then. We are currently enrolling our third chaplaincy cohort at The Order of Hildegard and we just ordained our first four candidates.
These are images taken upon arrival home to Florida tonight.
A home is a home is a home.
May my hands always remind me of my own home within. Of my own belonging with myself. I made a similar statement when I anointed our chaplain candidates hands last week.