Snatches for Your Story - Vol. 3

As promised, and just a tad bit late, here are 7 snatches to aid you in living out your wonderfully amazing summer story...
1 - Carve out a time on your calendar to put your life on pause. It's so good for us to rest. And be still. Escape the noise of the world for just a week, or just a day, or even just a moment - to be still & hear God's whispers. (Psalms 37:7) This is what we were able to do the past few weeks - go on vacation and simply rest. It was the most wonderful vacation ever.

We need times of rest so we can refuel and recharge for our times of productivity. It's all about balance. So promise me you'll take some to go within and reacquaint yourself with that still inner voice. Your whole story will become clearer when you do.🕊


2 - I hope you have been able to sketch out the beginnings of your summer story. But if not, it's never too late. Today I want you to carve out a space of time on your calendar to go to the stillness and evaluate how your summer story is unfolding. Your summer is just too precious to let it slip by without direction.

For a simple, two step framework, visit this post. A time of rest and stillness may be the best gift you give yourself this month, trust me! We all need a period of peace to reflect on where we are and where we going.

And most importantly, I hope you will reach out to me and share your summer story updates. Each of you are so important and if I can be a listening ear, or someone to bounce ideas off of, or an encourager on your journey in any way, I would be most honored.

I have loved reading about your stories and I look forward to hearing from more or you. Because I want to travel this journey together. Let's not journey alone, my friends.💗

3 - Are you convinced yet?🕊 Maybe these words will help:

"We are constantly in cycles of expansion and contraction. It is natural and healthy. It is vital that we are balanced in this way, growing, creating and expressing, then internalising, hibernating, rejuvenating ready to come out again for more expansion. Like nature moves in cycles, so we too are moving in cycles.

"Problems arise when we think we should be in constant expansion and attempt to live that way - doing more, getting more, being more, attaining, achieving, creating, mastering, speaking, moving, making... there must be counter cycles to this. WHY? Because the magic does not just happen in the expansive times in your life...

"The magic is BREWED UP in the contraction phases...when you are resting, when you are retreating, when you are on vacation, when you are quiet, when you are with your family, when you are in nature, when you are reflecting, when you are learning, when you are meditating... all these hibernating, internalising, retreating moments are the times when you recalibrate...

"There is something special that happens in the pauses, the gaps in between, that allows the spaces to then be filled with what you do, create and expand into. "It's like the gaps in a song, the dramatic pause before the next note sounds...

"Make like nature...ride these cycles with grace, in and out, up and down, outward and inward, creating and retreating, expressing and reflecting."  Wise words indeed from Bernadette Logue

 
4 - A quote to guide you:

"While I have learned that dreams need doing as much as they need being, I have learned that the being always comes first. 

"Today is a day for being. Be with those you love, be kind to yourself. Be quiet and call forth the dream you buried long ago. The ember is still glowing in your soul. See it in your mind, hold it tenderly in your heart." 

-Sarah Ban Breathnach

 5 - Just a gentle thought for a gentle morning (or evening). It does one good to step off the busy escalator of life for a few days and take a slight detour onto the road less traveled...the slow and simple path.


6 - "Lord, slow me down for a few moments today to make sweet memories with those I love most." -Suzie Eller

It seemed that every day of our vacation was restful and perfect, but one night was truly idyllic. It's not often that I get to sit in the quiet of a summer evening and watch my children play with their dad all sorts of made-up games - like a football toss, rocks dropping through the cracks competition, card games, and horseback riding. We ended the evening with a late night movie at this tiny, quaint drive-in. Something empty in me was filled that night and all I feel is sublime contentment.

7 - Give yourself the gift of permission today: 

"Rest is hard for me. I don't really know why. It's just hard to be still and let God love me. Being productive gets more kudos and offers less guilt. I know that's not a very Godly perspective but isn't it the honest truth? How often do people walk by you sitting on a porch or laying on the couch and say, "Good for you girl!! Look at you resting and relaxing. I'm so impressed with how great you are at just being still; letting God be God.🙋🏼Well, I've appointed myself to be that girl for you today. Go sit down and take a break. Take a deep breath. Read a book. Close your eyes and do nothing, if that's what you need most. Even just 10 minutes would be impressive. Don't feel guilty or like you don't have time. You do. You're worth it. God is inviting us to come; holding out His hand and offering a permission slip for a guilt-free rest. 💕Let's do it. Can you hear me applauding your new found amazing ability (i.e. attempt) to rest??!! 👏🏼👏🏼"

These are wise words from @reneeswope and I wholeheartedly echo her words. Let me be that girl for you today too! How will you choose to rest in the stillness?

My Story Updates

Have you had the chance to sit in the stillness and reflect on how your summer story is progressing? We just returned from a week-and-a-half long vacation. The mountain cabin gave me an idyllic space in which to just rest and ponder on my own story. I must admit, June was a flurry of activity with not much time to relax, so this vacation was just the prescription I needed to refocus my priorities and realize just what is important for me and my family. But, you don't need a mountain cabin or a week-long vacation to take time out to rest and recharge. Even just an hour to yourself at a park or in the quiet of your bedroom can work wonders for rebalancing.

In my last post, I suggested a few questions to guide you in evaluating the progress of your summer story. If you missed it, you can read it here.

And then I promised you an update to my own summer story. Not surprisingly, my summer story is not unfolding exactly as I had imagined. But stories are never like that, are they? There are always twists and turns that add excitement and drama. Most of this past month has been exactly what I thought it would be - our farmhouse was finally started (albeit much later than I hoped); we enjoyed vacations with family; I have begun my guided journaling practice; been feverishly working on the launching of my summer collections (which should happen next week, I promise!); and the acceptance and enjoyment of just where we are here in the middle house. But what didn't happen was the intentional pauses of peace to rest and soak in the words of beautiful books. This one was unfortunately pushed to the back burner nearly every single day, and when I tried to sit down to read, my mind was still racing a hundred miles an hour preventing my focus. I could feel that living this way was draining, but I couldn't seem to balance the activity with the rest. So, for the past week, all I have done is relax, ponder, read, plan, and make meaningful family memories. {If you struggle with striking the right balance, stay tuned for tomorrow's snatches.}

In all this, I see the Lord's hand shaping this summer into the very best story for me. It's been less about what I have done, and more about who I am. The Lord is teaching me how to find the very best rhythm for my peak performance, and how to appreciate (instead of downplay or criticize) my natural strengths. An unexpected tender mercy, to be sure.

From here on out, I trust the Lord with the unfolding. Much is unknown, but with bright faith, I trust that the Lord will work out the details. He is always so good - in both the storms and the sunshine. My focus for July will be on adventure (preparing for our little baby, launching my collections and new blog design, one last getaway for my husband and I before the baby, preparation for the new adventure of homeschooling we will be starting this Fall, instilling good and healthy habits for my life, and farmhouse designing. It will be busy to be sure, but I'm not going to let the busyness get the best of me this time around. I am committing to a balance of doing and being. As for August, our baby will come and so my focus will be on stillness, rest, and enjoying each moment with my precious children.

What will your focus be for the next two months? I'd love to hear how your story is evolving. Feel free to email me or comment below, my friends, because your story matters!

Also, to celebrate this 4th of July weekend (from now through Monday, July 4th), I am offering an exclusive sale in my etsy shop! With code: JULY40 you can receive a 40% discount on anything in my shop (including all prints, thank you card bundles, AND custom orders!!) This will be my biggest sale of the year, so if you've been eyeing something special for your home or for a gift, now would be the perfect time to hop on over! Click here to see my inventory!

Signing off until tomorrow...