9 Years | A Reflection

For the past nine years, Sept. 15th has been a marked day.

But this day – this anniversary – feels different. I don’t know if it is because of the recent loss of Emma and how my brain, heart, and soul are still reeling from adding another tragic day to my calendar of remembering. Or if it has something to do with the seemingly non-stop transitions of the last year, that have left me in more of the survival/going through the motions and less of the reflective/intentional pace of living that I have always aimed for. Or perhaps the different-ness of 9-years compared to the 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1 year anniversaries that preceded, is merely the movement of time.

Likely it is all three – and more. Nevertheless, today feels different.

More than any other year, I have shied away from conversations and even acknowledgment that today is the anniversary of THE day. [Perhaps that is why it is 11:24pm and I’m just now allowing myself space to write, and in so doing, allowing myself space to process.] I’m a little annoyed at myself for not seeking out spaces to process this anniversary today; to have deeper conversations about the things I have learned, the ways that I have grown, or even if/how I trust that God has/will bring beauty from the ashes of that day.

But maybe it is okay that today feels different and that I held my thoughts about the accident alone. I say this because sometimes on this day, I have sought conversations about what happened in order to somehow convey to the world that I have grown and healed and am now magically all better. And in this attempt to convince others, I am mainly working hard at convincing myself…

So maybe what feels the most unique and new about this year, this anniversary, is that I am allowing myself room to remember in such a way that invites all the feelings that I have about this day. I can remember that I have healed and that I am still in need of much more healing. I can remember that I have processed so much of that day and that I am still in desperate need of processing how the day has impacted me and how who I am  (and who I was prior to the accident) has impacted the ways that I process it. I am allowing my anger and sorrow and newness. I am allowing my extra-dose of introversion today. I am allowing myself to be slightly more walled-in with my feelings and I’m okay with that. I think.

Because today is one day.
It holds much, yes.
And what feels equally important is that Sept. 15th is one among many days.
I don’t have to have it all sorted on this day – and in fact, I think I get a bit of a pass on this day. I am just going to try to keep showing up to life and the rest will come when it comes.

peace.
-crf

 

 

 

30 Things I Learned on the Way to 30

I had this “30 before 30” list – and while it was well intentioned and actually not THAT ambitious, I utterly failed at completing it… I’d say I landed somewhere in the range of 11-12 things accomplished.

At first I was kind of frustrated with myself. It felt like one more thing that I planned to do but couldn’t or wouldn’t follow through on. But then I got to thinking more and realized that just because I didn’t quite make it through some silly list I created a couple years back, certainly does not mean I should be any less proud of who I am today.

Thus, in an attempt to celebrate all that I’ve learned in my 29.9999999999 years of life on this beautiful planet, I am going to offer 30 nuggets of wisdom that I have been blessed to learn in my less than perfect, but immensely rewarding little life. So, for both myself and for you, here are 30 thoughts…

1. Do justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly. ‘Nuff said.
2. No one is nearly as concerned about how you look as you are. Get over it. Wake up, get dressed. Stop staring at all your zits and random chin hairs and smile – because that is beauty right there.
3. Trust yourself, unless you are only hearing negative things. In that case, trust the people who remind you of your innate goodness. Spend as much time with them as possible.
4. Dogs make life better, especially the cuddly ones that let you dress them up in wigs and weird costumes and such. Cats are okay too…but not as great as dogs.
5. Read. Read as much and as widely as you can. Books open you to dormant passions hiding beneath the surface, waiting to be discovered and further explored.
6. We were crafted in the image of a Creator. We were made to create. So, create. Make things. Be a masterful artist in whatever medium brings you life. Sew. Dance. Write. Make lattes. Fix cars. Heal people. Create. And inspire others to do the same.
7. Try something new on a regular basis.
8. Play outside. Swing on swings. Walk barefoot in the grass. Blow bubbles. Play.
9. Don’t compare yourself to others. Allow others to challenge you to become a better version of yourself. This life is not about becoming someone else. We already have one of them. We need one of YOU. One of me.
10. Hang out with kids. They remind you not to take yourself too seriously and they make some ridiculously funny sounds/faces.
11. If you want to, get tattoos, but probably don’t get them impulsively and if you’re under 18 talk to your parents first. Your body is art in more ways than one. Take that for what it is.
12. Go on spontaneous road trips with people you love.
13. Don’t fight for perfection. Fight against it. Fight for creativity, vulnerability, honesty, relationship, realistic expectations, love. Perfectionism is never strength. Seriously. Never.
14. Forgive yourself. Daily. Forgive others too.
15. When people experience loss, don’t hide from them. They need you. Lean into your own discomfort and hold them. We have this tendency to try to minimize/ignore each other’s pain because it makes US feel better. Bad. Don’t do it. Walk into the sorrow with them and hang out. Even if it feels awkward. Of course respect people’s space and allow them time to be by themselves – but do what you can to make sure they know that they are not alone.
16. Eat well. Take the time to prepare meals, eat them slowly, and as often as possible, eat them with good people. Oh, and eat your veggies, they really ARE good for you.
17. Take pictures sometimes, but also just experience things without the camera so you can soak it in and have the memory fixed in your mind. If you live deeply you likely won’t need a camera to remember the most important experiences.
18. Cry when you need to. The whole idea that crying or emotion implies weakness is just plain wrong. Honor your emotions and mourn or weep or be sad when you need to. Don’t be concerned with how it makes you look. Be attuned to how you feel and explore what is making you feel that way, then process those things in a way that honors your selfhood and allows your community to do the same.
19. Dare greatly – check out Brené Brown on this one. Her research is legit. Everyone – EVERYONE – should read her books.
20. Eat ice cream from the carton every now and then…but not too often…I’ll let you decide what “too often” means.
21. Have hope. Don’t let fear control you. Conquer fear with hope.
22. Listen to good music. Heck, listen to bad music. Just Listen to music. And make playlists for life – they help remind you of who you are in certain seasons, or who you aspire to be. And if you have the means, do yourself a favor and go see a Broadway musical.
23. Procrastination is a defense mechanism. When you catch yourself procrastinating, pause, tell those internal messages to shut-up, take a deep breath, and carry on. I have lots more to say on this one, if you’re a procrastinator we should talk…
24. Be nice. There is no excuse for belittling others. Sometimes people really piss you off, even then, be nice. Through your actions you’ll begin to teach them to do the same.
25. Remember that everyone has a bigger story than you will ever know. Cut them (and yourself) some slack. We all were created good, so when you interact with another person, remember that they are just as good as you are. Treat both yourself and the other person as a cherished treasure.
26. Arguments happen. Resolve them. Don’t give up on the person or the other side of the argument. That’s not fair. Have hope that they can change, but more importantly listen to them with a willingness yourself to be changed.
27. Figure out what your strengths are and allow those to influence how you are in this world.
28. Be an advocate for those who do not have a voice, not just with your words, but also with your actions.
29. Find your way to commune with God. All things can be done as an act of worship (save for those that harm). Figure out what that looks life for you and do that unceasingly.
30. Love.

That’s my spiel. My plan is to spend the next 30+ years perfecting my own ability to live these out, and maybe even come up with 30 or so more… Let’s live well. Together.

Peace.

Claudia Renee Fisher.

Five Years.

It’s been five years.
Five years since the awful, terrible day.

Who I am today is largely shaped by that moment.  Because of that day I became astutely more aware of pain – others and mine.  I saw hurt with fresh, empathetic eyes.  Not only that, but God became increasingly more real to me.  His closeness to the brokenhearted, as well as His grace and forgiveness belonged to me in ways that I had yet to experience, though I still struggle to fully accept those things from Him, but don’t we all?

A lot has changed in my life (read: heart/soul) since a year ago today.  I’d venture to say that a great deal of that change is as a direct result from completing my first year of grad school – in pursuit of a Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology.  One of the requirements for my program is to be on the receiving end of 40 hours of counseling within one year.  At this point I am just three sessions shy of the 40 hour mark.  And I love it.  Every bit of it.  The conversations are not what I expected.  Though I knew they would be hard (hard being an understatement) – I did not expect their goodness and oh are they so good.  Because in the process of unpacking years of mess and glory, I am learning how to be a better version of myself – a more real and true portrait of the painting that God is continually creating stroke by stroke.

Each year the strokes surrounding the accident change.  I believe the process is called illumination.  I don’t always love what I see and learn about myself in light of facing the accident and who I’ve become because of it, but sometimes I discover new truths that have profound implications towards my goodness as a child of God.

I’ve struggled with buying into lies about my nature as a result of the accident.  I find myself thinking that I chose the fate of that day.  I’ve assumed that this is my fault.  I’ve hated myself at times, because “a good person wouldn’t have done this”.  I’ve experienced deeper shame than I ever thought possible.

And I say all these things as if they were past struggles… Silly me.  They are very present struggles, BUT (and this is a big and pivotal BUT) they come and go in waves, and truth is beginning to triumph over the lies more and more regularly.

I still wrestle with a jumbled mess of confusing thoughts about today – but what has really changed in my life in this last year is a desire to explore the thoughts, with hope for God’s redemption over this story.  I now believe that I can love the story. I don’t assume that I will arrive at a place of ever being glad that it happened (that would not be right and honoring to the life of Preston), but I do have hope that I will grow in ever-increasing amounts of love for what God has done with the darkness of that story—and the light He brings to me because of it.

I initially fought the need to explore this part of my life and now I’m up for the challenge.

Five years.

At times I cannot believe that it has already been that long – and then there are other times where five years pales in comparison to the amount of life that I’ve experienced since that day and I cannot believe it has only been that short of a time.  I idolized my fake “white picked fence” existence that gave the impression that I had it all together.  Ha.  That’s such a joke.  But please don’t read this as self-deprecating—because the joke is that “having it all together” is so subjective.  Really – what does that even mean?  I used to think it meant having a perfect life – without places for criticism, but that’s just plain unrealistic.

I no longer want that perfect life.  What I want is to continue to grow in the journey towards loving my story for all its imperfections.  I don’t want to be afraid to explore the ugly OR the beautiful.  I want to use my story to help me learn to walk with others as they too grow towards loving their stories.

And now I reflect on these words and realize that though I set out to write about the fifth anniversary of my car accident, these words have been so much more than those five years. And that in and of itself is so good.  I am not defined by that day.  I am defined by the Creator of all good things – and He has given me another name: blessed.  And THAT is the identity that I claim on this day – and every day.

I look forward to clinging to that identity – not fearing where I “should” be in the process of healing, but just being and loving.  That’s what I offer myself. That’s what I pray for us all.

Grace and Peace.

-Claudia

 

 

 

 

30 Before 30 – UPDATE!

Alright friends – since I am just one short year away from the BIG 3-0, I figured I should give a progress report on my 30 before 30 List…  I am amending it a big, because I can.  I also want to say a quick thanks for journeying with me.  My guess is that if you are reading this, your life has somehow impacted me in one way or another–and likely in many more ways than you will ever know.

Here she is, in all her glory:

1. CHECK! Begin working on my Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology – and hopefully reach the half way point in the program by the time I actually turn 30  
2. Lead worship – in any context and for any number is fine – just in some slightly formal setting
3. Go on an overnight hiking/camping trip
4. Play my guitar better (this should definitely occur PRIOR to the completion of #2)
5. Complete the first draft of a book that I’d like to write (not publish, just write…) Hmmmm, not sure if this one will come together, because of school and work and lack of time.  Therefore, I am changing it to:  write the outline, a synopsis, chapter titles, intro, or one chapter of the book.
6. Color Run – check it out.
7. Get healthy – meaning exercise regularly (somewhere in the realm of 2-3 times per week would be nice), eat better, sleep more, etc…  Yup.  This one happened for a tiny bit of time.  Then it stopped.  Ugh.
8. Get out of debt – I still have college loans…although this may not be possible if I am successful in completing #1 — THIS one is now officially not doable because of Grad School, unless I win the lottery… but I can amend it and say: get out of non-school based debt! (aka pay off my car loan).
9. Write more letters – maybe I should add an amount to this – let’s say, 100 letters in the next 2 years – that’s doable, right?
10. Ride a mechanical bull
11. CHECK! Hike to Fossil Rock – I haven’t done this for 12 years… I hiked there TWICE last year!
12. Learn to make latte art Happens on accident occasionally, but that doesn’t count.
13. CHECK! Chop off my hair and give it to Locks of Love (along with the two other chunks that were chopped off in the past that I failed to mail in – sad but true) BAM!  I did this one!  Though it did involve searching through a dumpster for the envelope of my hair that accidentally got thrown away… but I found it and was able to check this bad boy off the list!
14. CHECK! Sit down with my grandparents and hear their life stories
15. CHECK! Ride some form of public transportation all by myself
16. Read through the entire Bible, again.
17. Spend a day alone in a city with nothing but my Bible, journal, camera and I guess a water bottle or some food or something – but you get the idea
18. Clear out my closet (and perhaps my whole house) of things that I don’t use/need
19. Climb to the top of the 50′ side of the Climbing Tower at camp – this kind of scares me, but I really want to do it at least once
20. Go on a date – yeah, I’ve never done that before…like the kind where you BOTH know it is a date and not just friends going out to grab a bite to eat together.  There’s a difference.  Sorry mom.  Some day…
21. Learn how to listen and not interrupt people Progress has certainly been made.
22. Travel to a place i’ve never been before-ideally Europe, but I’m not holding out for that one…could end up being somewhere as exciting as Utah
23. Pick up a hitchhiker (almost did this one yesterday, but got too scared. Ugh.)
24. Get another tattoo
25. CHECK! Be a part of a life-changing moment in someone else’s life It was brought to my attention after posting this that I probably already HAVE been a part of a life-changing moment for a few people, and I think I can identify a few times this year that I have as well, so mission accomplished.
26. Take an official Adobe Creative Suite class – or at least, a Photoshop class
27. CHECK! Buy (and wear) heels Well, that is, if wearing them around the house counts…
28. Sing karaoke
29. Read 10 of the 100 Best Novels I think I may need to amend this one, with school and work, I don’t see this happening… SO, I am changing it to:  read TWO of the 100 Best Novels… 
30. Continue to grow in my relationship with God, know Him more, know myself more because it… I think I have accomplished this in some ways, BUT, I want to keep working on it, so it’s not checked off yet!

Cheers.

Four Years.

Today marks the four-year anniversary of what I’ve come to call “the accident”.  If you aren’t sure what I’m talking about, and want to know…here you go.

There are a lot of emotions that come with this day…but what I’ve been thinking about a lot lately is that it is strange to me that this day can be so many things to so many people.  To the vast majority I’m sure it is nothing special, just another start to a typical weekend.  To others it marks blessings like that of a 56^th wedding anniversary, the due date of a second born child, the two year anniversary of choosing to love rather than hurt oneself, etc…  but to me, and I’m sure countless others, this day has more of a somber tone – one that at times carries with it sorrow, shame, guilt, pain, sadness, loss, etc…

There are moments when it is more like a normal day.

And then I remember.

And I’m sad for a while.

But, despite the fact that this day will forever carry with it a deep scar from that ugly event, I cannot forget to tell of its beauty.  You see, I experienced the most real and undeserved grace four years ago; grace that forgave when it should have hated, grace that hugged when it had every right to injure.  In that moment, I got a glimpse of the love that God has for us.  And each year on this day, I am reminded of this undeserved grace, this unfathomable love, and it continually turns my mourning into dancing.

Sometimes I fight the urge to see good on this day.  I want to feel the tragedy of what happened four years ago, so as not to do an injustice to the memory of Preston.  I mean, really, how can I see good when I’m reminded of the accident?  Simple. God’s grace.  He takes what is rough and makes it smooth.  Yes, it was a horrible loss, but God’s story, which both you and I and Preston are a part of, is one of redemption.  It is the sweet release of redemption that allows me to exchange guilt for freedom, blame for understanding, self-hate for forgiveness, etc…

I began this post by stating that it’s strange that this day, September 15^th, 2012, or any day really, can mean such a variety of things to different people, but I think that is part of the journey.  Four years ago, if you would have told me that I would be able see good beyond that day, I don’t think that I would have believed you.  In fact, people did tell me that, and while I agreed outwardly, there was very little of me that believed it inwardly… in the beginning.  But time, and faith, and again, God’s grace brought beauty from ashes and I know now that there is more to each moment of our lives than we originally see.  I don’t know what your “September 15^th” moments are, but I pray that as you experience sorrow, shame, guilt, pain, sadness, loss, etc… you would begin to heal from those feelings and hold fast to the redemption offered by God, and allow him to make your rough places smooth.

“I never realized that broken glass could shine so brightly”

30 before 30

I was inspired by a friend of mine to do a “30 before 30” list aka a baby-bucket list of 30 things that I’d like to do before I turn 30 years old.  This Thursday I will be turning 28 (gasp!) which gives me just 2 years to accomplish this list…

So here’s the list (in no particular order whatsoever-except the last one, that one’s the most important):

1. Begin working on my Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology – and hopefully reach the half way point in the program by the time I actually turn 30
2. Lead worship – in any context and for any number is fine – just in some slightly formal setting
3. Go on an overnight hiking/camping trip
4. Play my guitar better (this should definitely occur PRIOR to the completion of #2)
5. Complete the first draft of a book that I’d like to write (not publish, just write…)
6. Color Run – check it out.
7. Get healthy – meaning exercise regularly (somewhere in the realm of 2-3 times per week would be nice), eat better, sleep more, etc…
8. Get out of debt – I still have college loans…although this may not be possible if I am successful in completing #1
9. Write more letters – maybe I should add an amount to this – let’s say, 100 letters in the next 2 years – that’s doable, right?
10. Ride a mechanical bull
11. Hike to Fossil Rock – I haven’t done this for 12 years…
12. Learn to make latte art
13. Chop off my hair and give it to Locks of Love (along with the two other chunks that were chopped off in the past that I failed to mail in – sad but true)
14. Sit down with my grandparents and hear their life stories
15. Ride some form of public transportation all by myself
16. Read through the entire Bible, again.
17. Spend a day alone in a city with nothing but my Bible, journal, camera and I guess a water bottle or some food or something – but you get the idea
18. Clear out my closet (and perhaps my whole house) of things that I don’t use/need
19. Climb to the top of the 50′ side of the Climbing Tower at camp – this kind of scares me, but I really want to do it at least once
20. Go on a date – yeah, I’ve never done that before…like the kind where you BOTH know it is a date and not just friends going out to grab a bite to eat together.  There’s a difference.
21. Learn how to listen and not interrupt people
22. Travel to a place i’ve never been before-ideally Europe, but I’m not holding out for that one…could end up being somewhere as exciting as Utah
23. Pick up a hitchhiker
24. Get another tattoo
25. Be a part of a life-changing moment in someone else’s life
26. Take an official Adobe Creative Suite class – or at least, a Photoshop class
27. Buy (and wear) heels
28. Sing karaoke
29. Read 10 of the 100 Best Novels
30. Continue to grow in my relationship with God, know Him more, know myself more because it…

Wish me luck.

Merry Christmas – 2011

Dear friends and family:

I’ve decided to give the whole “Christmas card/letter writing” thing a go again. However, since I am a little behind this year, I’m going to cheat a bit and just put this up on my blog…that way, it won’t be late – AND – I’ll save on postage.

I enjoy the (self-imposed) forced time of reflection to just sit and be still, especially because one of the things that I learned in 2011 is that I spend far too little time being still and reflecting on the goodness of this life that God’s given me. There are indeed events and circumstances that occur in our lives that are not what we anticipated, nor what we desired, but despite these occasionally unwelcomed circumstances, we are still so blessed. I say this because chances are, if you’re reading this you have access to a computer, which in turn means that you are probably someplace warm. You, like me, probably have plenty of food and clothing and aren’t struggling to live day to day. We are blessed with so many every day comforts that far too many people live without. So, perhaps the greatest thing that I learned in 2011 is to rejoice in my blessedness, to recognize myself and others as God’s dearly loved children and to do everything within my power to live in such a way that glorifies my Heavenly Father and causes others to do the same.

Okay, enough of the heavy (not that it isn’t worth pushing ourselves to examine our hearts and lives, you should do it if you have the opportunity, and if you don’t think you do, MAKE the opportunity…that’s all) – I’ll lighten things up a bit and take some time to, hopefully, entertain you with pictures and potentially witty comments.

Highlights from 2011 include, but are not limited to:

Roughly this time last year, I rung in the New Year with some good friends on my first ever snowshoeing adventure. I wasn’t anywhere near prepared and ended up quite damp at the end of the day from the numerous times I tipped over (or perhaps more accurately, the numerous times that one Tyler Theodore Krumland pushed me over…) – January

I had the honor, and slight anxiety, of photographing my first ever legit event: a show played by a good friend, Tom Rorem of Lowlands, (also featuring another good friend, Ellie VerGowe) at the Triple Door in Seattle – January

I also really enjoyed getting stuck in the Chicago Snowpocalypse while recruiting for Cascades summer staff.  The photo below is me and my boss, Rob, braving the storm for a quick photo. – February

By far the grandest adventure of the year was a crazy trip to South Africa with my crazy friend and old college roommate, Katie Schiller. This was a birthday present from my dad and was a trip of a lifetime. I got to see the elusive dung beetle, praying mantis and several varieties of butterflies. Oh and I also go to see things like zebras, cheetahs, elephants, rhinos, giraffes, etc… They were cool too. – April

I have a sweet job.  I mean, really, seriously, SWEET. The job was made even sweeter when I was offered a promotion to become the Program Director at Cascades.  The picture below is me “hard at work” at my desk.  I’m in the process of destroying my hair to participate in a night game as a creepy villain.  So glad that my [former] intern, Loren, was around to talk to the parents of one of our campers that stopped by smack dab in the middle of me ratting out my hair to look the part. – May

Along similar lines, but with more of a bittersweet flavor, I bid farewell to the Trailerhood this year and moved into a NEW HOUSE. Yup, that’s right. After 3+ years of living in a home that could be pulled behind a truck and relocated at anytime, I moved into the perfect little house. Sadly, I’m lame and don’t have a picture of the house. Dumb. Maybe I’ll update this later, so you can see it, in all its cuteness.  VERY IMPORTANT AMENDMENT:  A tragedy has occurred.  I made a terrible error in omitting a crucial part of my new living situation:  my fabulously cool roommate, Kristin!  She’s great and makes living in a house even more cool.  I’m so sorry I forgot to mention her sooner!  Rude.  I can have a coke.  – May

Coming in towards the top of the cool-o-meter in 2011, would be getting the complete pleasure of seeing U2 in concert at what was then known as Qwest Field. My crush on “the Edge” was only fueled by being in such close proximity to his masterful guitar-playing self.  Not that you can tell, but that’s him up on the big screen in the background of the photo below.  Therefore, I’ve had my picture taken with the Edge! (Well, not really, but you get the idea…) – June

Summer was definitely a highlight for me. No – I did not go on some crazy vacation (Remember? I did that in April!) Summer was a highlight for me because I survived it. Of my 10 summers at Cascades (the most recent four having been while I was on year-round staff), this was the first time I led the Program Department…alone. Though to say that I did it “alone” is far from accurate. I had some amazing support, in my bosses, co-workers and employees. I walked away from the summer loving my job even more than I thought I could and happily felt like I didn’t just survive it. If you can think back in the recesses of your mind to the good old movie about that faithful pig, Babe, it was a bit like what farmer Hoggett said to Babe, “That’ll do pig, that’ll do”. No, I’m not calling myself a pig, I’m just saying that in the end, I was quite satisfied with how it all went… – June to September (or more like November…)

As summer wrapped up, I got to enjoy a lovely trip to Idaho to celebrate my grandma’s 80th birthday.  The trip included a delicious dinner with family and friends (several of whom I’d never met before), free continental breakfast at the hotel (woohoo), a trip to the water park complete with trying my hand at boogie boarding and of course who could forget the momentous occasion when a cockroach fell from the ceiling into my nieces bath water (I have pictures if you want to see them…sick, right?). – September

My apologies in advance to those family members (cough cough, Grandma and Grandpa) who have yet to hear of this ‘highlight’, but I did indeed make a permanent decision that one cannot go back on:  I got a tattoo.  And I love it. I may or may not already be planning a second one…oops. (For those that are curious, the tattoo says, “I never realized that broken glass could shine so brightly”) – September

 Not really sure if this falls under the “highlight” category as much as just something to note, but I figured that it was about time to jump on the band-wagon and put my life out there for people to become familiar with or criticize or question. Hahaha. But, really, I chose to start blogging to not only document life, but also to have a space to purposefully process this journey that God has me on. Oh, and I also apparently to document my culinary masterpieces/disasters.  (This clearly doesn’t need a pictures since you are currently reading this on my blog…) – October

And last, but certainly not least:  If moving into a house wasn’t enough of a sign that this kid is turning into a grown up, buying and decorating my very first Christmas tree, surely is! – December

I hope you enjoyed this little journey through my life over the past year.  I know this is getting far too long and there are probably very few of you who will read to this point, but I’d like to leave you with this final thought:

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord…” – Luke 2:10-11

Therefore, please remember, you are dearly loved by the One who came so long ago, the One whose birth we celebrate today. So today (and hopefully from this day forward), live knowing that, despite any and all faults you may have, He sees you as His own child, dearly loved.

Once again, may the peace of Christ be with you today and merry Christmas.

Love,

Claudia & Bella