kindness – Glenna S. Edwards

The In-between

Published on December 29, 2019December 29, 2019 by Glenna S. Edwards

Welcome to the in-between weekend.

Christmas lights are hit or miss now.

It is hard to remember today’s date.

New Years is coming.

I’ve heard some grumbling and sadness around town.

Maybe you are a Have-Not who listened to The-Haves talk about expensive gifts received.

Perhaps you just heard, “but we’ll always be friends” as he shared he is serious about a new relationship.

It’s not even break up season yet. You were blindsided.

Or your mini vacay to-do list is not close to done.

Did you use all the energy you had to cope during a time of grief?

Fear not.

To the person who needs to hear this today, you are valued exactly as you are.

You matter.

Order and routine will be restored.

It’s ok to take a nap.

Embrace what is and give it to God. Allow the feelings to pass through your body so you can move on. If you fight emotions, the pain lasts longer.

As for that to-do list, tackle something manageable first.

This is a good time to pray, praise, rest, connect to your source.

Reset for 2020.

Remember there is a time for everything. Don’t beat yourself up in this short window.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time.

How may I pray for you? Dm me with prayer requests for the new year.

Love,

Glenna

A Little Hungry

Published on November 10, 2019November 16, 2019 by Glenna S. Edwards1 Comment

If I could assign “required reading” for adults on the planet, then I would put on the list Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, And A Mother’s Will To Survive by Stephanie Land. Buy it, read it, “get” it.

Stephanie writes about the days when she had a small child, no other reliable adult support, lived in a mold ridden apartment that made them sick, and worked as a maid. For me, as a woman who struggles a bit now and as a daughter of a mom who cleaned houses for 20 plus years on top of her day job, this book echoed through my whole being.

People need to know what it is like to be in Stephanie’s shoes. The juggle is intense. What might seem like the most common things become road blocks. For example, recently a woman asked me if she could use my computer to fill out and print a Section 8 form. When I said of course, her relief was visible. Her forehead, shoulders, and arms relaxed; measurable only in millimeters on the exhale, right in front of me.

If we really want to help people in poverty, then we need to help with things like printing and transportation. And we need to nix the judgemental and marketing manipulative attitudes.

Some people give others the stink-eye because someone who may appear to be poor has what looks like a smartphone. But let me tell you that phone likely does not do everything your phone does. That person may only pay for a certain number of minutes at a time. What may be your daily lifeline is a tool that comes and goes for them. Imagine how quickly you might run out of minutes with no money to get more. Over the summer, a woman called me to help her track the bus route progress. She had a phone but no internet. She was waiting at a bus stop and trying to get to the hospital to see her child. She talked me through how to use my phone to look up the live bus line.

And how about the environmental marketing that impacts people in poverty? If you go into Kroger in a fancy neighborhood, the alcohol may be in a separate side store or tucked in a pergola looking back section of the store. If you go into a Kroger in an area with higher poverty, then the alcohol is in front and often near the checkout like candy for the young and old to see all year long. Cigarettes and E-cigs? Where do you think the most vape shops are and the most colorful nicotine addictive luring posters?

If we really cared, mental health and self care learning options would be accessible at the unemployment office and government offices that give assistance. We could teach better options. We could make healthy resources easier to connect with. We could.

The prolonged brain strain begins to physically hurt. I know first hand the constant pressure of trying to pay bills with no way to save toward the inevitable broken appliance, car repair, etc. I must write down every little to-do item or I will forget. I think of this time in our lives as either go-to-work or shelter-in-place and allow time to pass until the next paycheck.

When Hubby needed help today he said, “No because it’s not fair to you.” I replied, “Thanks for the acknowledgement. And this is not fair to either one of us. We’re in this [ALS-21] together.”

People say you either get better or get bitter. I think that is true, but my brain hurting likely will not go away until we sell the house and start over. I cast vision daily in my mind of what it will look like when we are no longer slave to a mortgage after losing his income, and when we are in a more accessible location so I can stop worrying about how Hubby will make it up or down stairs.

My “getting better” is in the appreciation of many small things. I notice beauty around me. Every time there is hot water I am thankful. When I open the fridge door to cold food, I am delighted. Groceries are golden. When a friend bought me two tacos, I felt joy to ditch tuna and peanut butter on a long pre-paycheck week. I have hugged the washer and dryer in appreciation for their endurance. I marveled at this sunset Saturday night:

If you struggle, you are not alone. Stephanie Land reminds us of that.

What would you place on the required adult reading list?

Love,

Glenna

One Less Thing

Published on November 3, 2019November 4, 2019 by Glenna S. Edwards

I realized my self-talk whispers “ok, one more thing” over and over each time a new daily challenge arrives. This came to my attention when suddenly I experienced a fifteen minute window where I soaked in the joy of One-Less-Thing instead.

My car dashboard mirrors my life with its scattered warnings. The tire maintenance light is forever “on”. I’ve had 5 nail punctured tires over 5 months.

The service engine light greets me each morning. The oil change guy hooked up a gadget reader to tell me the light is nothing to worry about, but I wonder. The brake light won’t go out even when the emergency brake is released. I stopped looking up what the other lights mean in the manual.

The dashboard reminds me of the running narrative in my mind. It goes something like this: I’m still sick. Stress is not helping me get well. Drop the kid off at school. Go to work. Repeat. My voice refuses to come back. The cat puked. -One more thing. I need to make dinner. Sweep the house. Keep trying to sell the house. Clean the bathroom. Move the laundry. I really should write a letter or send a care package to our deployed son. What just fell off the house?! -One more thing. If you sit down, you’ll fall asleep. Get up. Give Hubby the light weight fork because it is easier for him to manage. Position his shoes in a way that will help him be less likely to fall. Move his phone to his next location so he is not thrown off balance by carrying something when he travels inside the house. Help the remaining kid with college applications. I need to go to Lowe’s. Heavy duty caulk. A new vacuum bag. Take out the trash and recycling. Prepare for presentations at work. Who do I need to call back? Have I followed through on all work tasks? Scoop litter box. Check personal email to see if anyone has responded to my manuscript query letters. Send more queries. Do we have gas in both cars? Pay bills in a way that hopefully does not cause an overdraft. It’s going to be close again this month. Is Hubby breathing? Is the cat breathing? I really need to make a vet appointment. -One more thing. There are other people I want to check in with. I text them. There are other people I would like to be there for. My capacity is too narrow. I can’t believe he hasn’t been able to work for a year. We need some mobility equipment. That will have to wait. The kid needs an eye appointment. -One more thing. I can’t make that work financially. How many hours of sleep can I get if I go to sleep right this minute? Why can’t I fall asleep? And so forth.

I try not to complain out loud. “Just keep swimming” as Dory says. But seriously, if there is a Santa out there who wants to buy our house so we can leave and start over, that would be GREAT.

Today I uprooted this tree growing into our fence and felt delighted by the image. Yes, we are ready to be uprooted.

In an attempt to make extra cash, I placed an ad to be a Pet Sitter. I can squeeze in dog walking and more cat litter scooping. I can love on animals and give neighbors peace of mind. The first response? Someone needs help with a cat until they get out of jail in February. So many thoughts. Bless their heart. Sigh….

One day I will not feel so stuck. I visualize selling a manuscript and being in an affordable and accessible home. One day I’ll be in the land of all three. I have learned hard lessons. I can do better.

This week our youngest got a job. Go kid! And he broke my heart by saying, “You won’t have to worry about Christmas, Mom, ’cause I’ll be able to buy my own presents.” The sentiment is good. The reality hurts.

A new job means he needs new pants. We make a plan to go to the store Wednesday. I secretly stress about how to afford the pants, but I think we can make it work. I don’t want him to know how close we are cutting it.

On Tuesday evening I drag my work bag into the house as the guys say, “We have a surprise.”

There on the kitchen table are new pants one day early. Hubby even used a coupon. In my book, that’s hot. Hubby had a decent afternoon and they worked together. I hear that the wheelchair got stuck in the JCPenny door, and they figured that out too.

In the moment, I physically felt something fall off the to-do list. One. Less. Thing. This felt magical. I soaked in the joy for fifteen intentional minutes. I smiled in my own home. This surprise felt so good!

This was a glimpse that things can be better. Will be better. I will trust the process.

To all those who struggle, I send you a giant cyber hug. You can do this. We can do this. Deep, slow breaths.

And now I must go.

The cat puked.

Love,

Glenna

In the Stillness

Published on October 20, 2019October 20, 2019 by Glenna S. Edwards1 Comment

Chronic illness and caregiving are lonely places to be. And a lonely place can be smack dab in the middle of your own house. It is easy to be forgotten when you don’t show up hardly anywhere social anymore. It’s easy to miss friends even when you talk to them a lot via text.

This is one of those posts that is scary to write because I certainly don’t want to hurt Hubby’s feelings; however, he has said to me before maybe if you write the truth it will help other people not feel as alone.

I try to look at our situation like we’re lucky because we have each other. If you’ve ever lived this type of life, then you know that’s just as funny as it is true. I hold onto what I can. I miss him. And I hate that he feels (in my opinion) sick 80+% of the time. We each silently regret some of the things we could have been out doing in our early years together.

There is sweetness too. When he verbally appreciates my weak effort to do house chores. When he offers me quiet time in the house because he knows the silence soothes me. When he will go to the end of the Google search engine to research anything the boys or I need. And, I have my thoughts about him always being a man of integrity. That is one of the things that attracted me to him long ago. Recently he agreed to do an audio book club with me. I am hopeful the first book discussion will be fun from our different perspectives. I’ve listened through chapter 9 so far.

I ponder if this time of both rest and stress ultimately helps me focus more time on writing projects. The quote below got my attention this morning after waking up from another nightmare for the sixth morning in a row:

Writers need a platform. Mine is growing. I am thankful that my Twitter followers are 18 away from 1,000 (as of the time of this post) which I read is an important step in jumping onto a propulsion algorithm. We shall see. Fingers crossed. It’s not about “likes” for publishers. It is about “would anyone buy her book?”. Since I am 60% introvert and 40% extrovert, this writer life climb is filled with internal conflict–hence the nightmares? Being on a team is joyful for me. Putting my neck out there solo causes a touch of angst.

I enjoy getting to know a little bit about people in the writing world who live around the globe. That part of the journey is fun. I just cyber-met someone who is on number 200 of her 300 bucket list items. How cool is she? Go girl, @VickyJones7.

So in this life filled with challenges, I say: Carry on in the stillness. Carry on in the Light. Carry on, dear readers, carry on.

Much love,

Glenna

Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.

Put It In The Bear Box

Published on October 6, 2019October 6, 2019 by Glenna S. Edwards2 Comments

I could not physically go on. After walking sunrise to sunset miles down a mountain and then miles back up, I was d-o-n-e done.

In fact, I was not sure I could make it from the large rock where I sat to where we were supposed to pitch tents for the night. My feet felt as if each toe was on fire.

SunFloJo [trail name] returned from scouting the campsite while the group of us stayed with the backpacks and overnight equipment.

I confessed, “I don’t think I can do this another day. It is your dream to hike all week and you should not miss the chance. I’m slowing you down, and I’ve thought it through. I absolutely will be fine if you leave me behind. I’ve got a book. And I am sure I’ll be safe. You must go on without me.” I even carried a fairly lethal knife that my oldest son insisted I have in my pocket during the trip. Whether bears or other probs, I would be fine. My biggest challenge would be disappointment in myself as I watched the other women leave me behind.

I gauged her facial expression to be a mix of “so true that you are slowing us down and yet no, I can’t leave you alone“.

I hobbled to camp and collapsed for a while as daylight slipped into night sky.

My mind spun around options regarding what to do next. I felt beyond grateful to no longer have a sweaty back and backpack attached. The group ate and laughed.

We placed food or items that might cause animal smell curiosity into a bear box.

The bear box was a new concept for me. I marveled at its purpose and convenience. To prepare for the trip we had brought a bear bag and rope to place items away from us and up a tree. This night, though, we had the fancy metal box. It felt like we had a community chest of drawers out in the woods. I appreciated the safety and kindness of the bear box.

One Benadryl later, I fell asleep too tired to wonder what that scurry sound was swishing by my single person tent.

Birds became my alarm clock that week. I lay thinking hard about what it would take to continue the trail.

What if half of what I had been carrying simply stayed behind in the bear box? Could we swing back by this place at the end of the week when we have access to a car again?

Long story short, that is what we did. Everyone, especially me, lightened our load. The bear box held the burden. I dared to lace up hiking boots again and head back to the trail knowing the next stop did not have the convenience of a bear box. The next stop we planned to be much deeper in the woods. I didn’t want to miss the next level challenge.

The bear box has become a mental metaphor for me when times are tough. What can I leave behind for now? What do I need to deal with today, tonight, and leave the rest for later?

In many ways, the bear box represented my faith during that trip.

Best wishes to you this week. If you can’t carry the burden, feel free to stick it in the metaphorical bear box for now.

Love,

Glenna

Matthew 11:28-30 ²⁸“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

What Swirls In Your Head

Published on March 1, 2019March 1, 2019 by Glenna S. Edwards2 Comments

Are there negative comments made by others about you that come to mind easily or often?

And worse, were those words said many years ago, but still linger today?

Yeah? Me too.

I’ve chosen to address some of the aforementioned. To follow is one example.

Shortly after Hubby and I were married my mom said, “I know he must love you because I know what that (me!) looks like in the morning.”

Some might think that she was jovial or meant her over share for fun, but in that moment I felt her words pierce my newlywed abdomen. Deep.

Over the decades I barely noticed that I heard her say it over and over within the swirling sauce pan on my mental health back burner. Her sentence low level impacts my ability to function.

I don’t want to see me in the mornings. I can be slow to rise post alarm clock. Her words are there even when I mostly ignore their existence. I take way too long to get out the door. I dread the daily get ready ritual. And frankly, I’d like a blue ribbon for managing to get me from bedhead to work while also getting children to school for much of the last 20 years.

Recently I allowed myself to tune in to the slow burn frequency. I decided that every single day for the month of February I would take a morning selfie within minutes of being awake.

Maybe if I head on face my own face and wild AM hair, then I could find release from those stupid words?

So the selfies began.

I challenged her comment.

And I felt annoyed mostly.

I laughed at frayed ponytails. I dared to whisper “make up free is beautiful” or “lingering one eyed eye liner is hot”.

I hid sometimes.

I took a pic daily no matter what.

I guessed by my birthday mid month surely I would be past carrying the hurt. I am a gosh darn Valentine Day born person filled with Love and Light. I am done with holding myself back. Right?

Nope. I did not feel better the 14th, 15th, 16th, and so forth.

I continue with my selfie promise and determine that I will learn to love all this. After all, God loves me. And there are plenty of people who may not be traditional magazine cover material, but I find them gorgeous inside and out. Could I admire the undone me?

Along the way I accept that I may complete the month without feeling any breakthroughs on the subject of my morning time look. I pondered verses like:

Psalm 139:14 I will give thanks to you because I have been so amazingly and miraculously made. Your works are miraculous, and my soul is fully aware of this.

Ephesians 5:29 For no one has ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, as the Messiah does the church.

Proverbs 19:8 To acquire wisdom is to love oneself; people who cherish understanding will prosper.

Then one night last week I had a dream. A detailed dream. People I trust and value greatly were there. I was invited to go on a hike. I had to pack quickly borrowing some supplies, grabbing what was available, and choosing to do without some items.

My hiking buddy was a young early 20’s gal with red hair. As we passed an amusement park on our way to nature she said, “I may not be or feel pretty, but I always have adventure.”

Yes! Something shifted in my body. I connected with the free to roam, always have adventure statement. When I woke up, I no longer felt linked to the negative feelings. I felt change.

I thanked God for my sense of departure from the negative weight.

Since that dream I have continued the February commitment while also noticing my improved ability to love the person I spend the most time with: me.

The 28 pictures have formed into an art collection. I appreciate both the humor and seriousness found in the pictures.

I am pretty excited today is March 1. No more morning selfies and no more need for morning selfies.

What swirls in your mind? Is there something you can address with the intention of breaking free from it? I’d love to hear how you creatively kick certain thoughts or words to the curb.

Wishing you health and freedom,

Glenna

When Was The Last Time

Published on July 21, 2018 by Glenna S. Edwards1 Comment

When was the last time he took my hand and we took a walk together? When was the last time he could stand up from the couch without thinking about how to stand? How many years ago was the last time he could golf–his all-time favorite activity? When was the last time our home did not involve daily groans and pain?

As a mother, I vowed to cherish everything about our sons: every flutter as they swam in the womb, first grins, first toys, first words. My heart skipped beats when their little hands kept reaching for mine well into elementary school years. I knew their childhood would end. I treasured their soft skin and cuddles. I would not squander those moments. And while storing up sweet memories I welcomed the fact that one day our boys would move on to a greater destiny beyond their mom’s heart.

What I did miss was treasuring simple moments with my husband. Yes, I appreciated him. Yes, we tried to spend time together. Yes, we overcame the fact that opposites really do attract and chose to draw closer to God, our translator, to communicate. Yes, we did not give up on our marriage or each other. But did I truly cherish him? I didn’t think he was leaving. And he hasn’t left, but sometimes it seems like he isn’t all here either. My mind reaches for precious moments of ease that I forgot to store in my brain.

Grief arrives in many forms. Sometimes we grieve the loss of a job or relationship. I’ve endured the pain of people close to me passing away. You may have too. And now I endure the pain of watching chronic illness ALS-21 steal expectations we had for our present and future. Our youngest child is a teenager. I thought we had more time before hubby and I grew old together. But symptoms of old slowly moved into our home decades too soon. We are like the metaphoric frog in the pot of tepid water who didn’t know the heat was about to turn up. We sat calmly in the pot not noticing that the water began to boil our circumstances.

I spend hours each week clearing “stuff” out of our house. It feels like we are in a race against the clock to move to a more accessible place. We had plans to remodel that will never happen while we are here. I feel the ugly emotion of jealously toward people I haven’t met who will do projects here that I likely will not see. Tears drizzle my checks occasionally over leaving our home of 20 years too soon. What really got me down deep was when our oldest son was home on leave from the Air Force. A couple nights he didn’t want to go see friends. He shared that he just wanted to enjoy the walls of our home because he knew he might not ever again get to come home to this address.

On the flip side of the moving coin, I celebrate the thought of being in a home where my husband doesn’t have to crawl upstairs at night. Are we old enough to require a no steps living arrangement? Apparently yes. This thought process requires me to clear clutter faster. Time is not waiting for me. I’ve quit looking at other homes online because I need to focus on the task of leaving this home first. I trust God will provide the right place for us at the right time.

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34

I often tell myself that our situation could be worse, that there are worse things that people deal with. These thoughts push me along to be grateful for the good things in our lives that we do have, or things that are better because we’ve had to adapt. For example, I’m not sure my husband has ever verbally appreciated me more than he does now. His kind words mean a lot to me. We are also more forgiving and appreciative these days. It seems like we have reached a calm place where we are slow to anger and less judgmental. I thank God for the side benefits of sticking together and pushing through tough times as a team.

Are you grieving a loss or expectation of any size? It takes time to grapple with it. If you have tips or favorite verses about grieving that you would like to share, please comment. I’d love to hear from you.

Resting Face Fix

Published on June 30, 2018August 31, 2018 by Glenna S. EdwardsLeave a comment

We sat on the 52nd floor of Prudential Tower inside the Top of the Hub restaurant. It was the last evening of a week-long training in Boston, Massachusetts. The city lights twinkled in the night-time landscape. My female co-worker’s fork froze midair ascent when he said it.

His name was Alan. I had stored him in my contacts as Al from Nashville–met 2012.

Among the dark wood finishes and fresh flowers, we had a deep conversation about youth led substance abuse prevention and teen empowerment. With intrigue and conviction, he points to me, “You are smarter than I thought you were.” I am silent, then he continues, “Looking at your face this week I didn’t know you were this intelligent.”

Huh.

Now…I may suspect this was a moment of unconscious bias toward females in his life. It could be. But I chose to own my piece of it quietly because this was the fourth time in my adult life that something like this was said to me. Four felt like a theme. Even if the score is three males to one female who said something similar over the years, it is still a theme. I’ve been back burner simmer thinking about this subject matter for a while.

Fast forward to 2018 when I’m getting ready to leave for a writer’s conference. On my list to discuss with my Masterminds group was: My Resting Face Problem. I filled in the 4 women team on the issue. They offered quality meeting people for the first-time guidelines. Then we came up with the idea to have specific words in mind all week that would hopefully project on my face in the quiet times, walking around campus times, and all times. They suggested I come up with 3-4 words.

So, I did just that. During the drive I committed that the following words would be on my face while in public always: welcoming, kindness, humble, confidence. Each time I left my room I looked in the mirror and said those words.

Then a metaphoric resting face earthquake happened not 24 hours into the conference. I received a punch you in the stomach kind of phone call from home. The call was about work, co-workers and children I care about immensely. It was a blind side and news of a likely short-sighted decision that could roll down hill in a painful way. I turned my face toward the nearest wall because I felt the strategy words slide right off my face.

I quickly prayed for many things and did my best to acknowledge gratitude that no one was physically bleeding or worse at home. I was minutes away from the next meeting with a literary agent. Turning toward a wall may have morphed into bouncing off walls because someone noticed. I strained for composure when the sweetest person scooped me up. Her name is Janine Rosche. This dear sister sized me up in less than 2 minutes and asked if she could pray me over the hurdle. Uh, yes please, Jesus take the wheel, I’m thinking. She prayed me from brain implosion WHAT!? to calm. I am forever grateful. She is a Christian Romance writer. Her blog is JanineRosche.com. [I will buy anything she writes–hear that publishers?!]

The shakeup was Monday. I carried on prayerfully the rest of the week. Mostly I could focus, but I felt my body stress while in a new situation and it hurt to know people were hurting at home. Resting face words became even more important because I used thinking about the words to center myself each day. I needed to remember who I am and why I was there.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday hummed along and I enjoyed connecting with people and learning. Thursday afternoon I sat down before the long drive home to care for some business deadlines and emails. The covered patio overlooking a pond was a comfort. I knew I’d feel better if I knocked out the work rather than pause at rest stops looking for wi-fi.

So help me, the phone rings and during the call I hear another piece of work information that sours my stomach. People can be cruel. The details don’t matter, but it was a problem that led me to be concerned whether I could handle driving 6 hours home.

Most conference attendees were already gone. The campus was quiet. Along comes a husband and wife team from Alabama that I had met earlier in the week. They run a marriage ministry. They stopped to say hello. I explained that I was concerned about making the drive. They asked if they could pray for me. Yes, please.

And then the full circle moment zapped my heart.

This is a clip from their prayer:

“….Lord, every time we’ve seen Glenna this week her face is a welcoming face, a kind face. She is weary right now before the drive, but we ask you restore her confidence that we know is in her. We thank you for the humble spirit we’ve sensed from her all week….”

I almost fell to the ground.

God is good. God looks out for us and all of our struggles. He even helps with resting face fixes!

While the Bible may not talk about the term “resting face”, I do cherish the following verse because rest and God’s presence is vital through the ups and downs of life. In our facial expressions God can give us rest and focus. In our struggles the greatest theme above any of our own life themes is the fact that God can weave the words and people we need into our current challenge. We have His presence and we have His kind of rest available. He will go with us.

And he said, “My presence will go with you and I will give you rest.” Exodus 33:14 NKJV

Glenna

Feel the Feels

Published on June 23, 2018June 29, 2018 by Glenna S. EdwardsLeave a comment

You might think that someone who was a psych major would already know this, but what I am about to share is something I’ve only figured out how to do in the last 18 months. I am not an expert, but I am getting better and practicing.

As children many of us are taught to suppress undesirable emotions. For example, we may be told don’t be mad, sad, cry or demonstrate feelings that might make someone else (like a parent perhaps) feel uncomfortable.

Nowadays in my work I find more and more information that states it is important to validate a child’s emotions. Tell the child it is ok to feel what they feel, and then encourage them to think carefully about what actions they will do next while being aware of their feelings.

Sidebar: Jesus had all the emotions while on earth that we have too. It’s how we utilize those emotions that matters. We can welcome the feeling(s) and still be in control of our behavior choices.

Recently I told a friend, “Not that you are…but be enraged if you need to be. Use it. Maybe you need a little mad to keep moving. Feel the feels and let them pass through your body. Then get back to work.”

I have found that if I fight the feels, then it takes longer for me to get on track. I have learned to:

Pause. Allow myself to take a time out when I need it.
Identify the emotion or emotions.
Say in acknowledgement “I feel _______ (fill in the blank).”
Visualize the emotion(s) pass through my body.
Repeat as needed. Breathe and exhale through the process. Release the pain if needed. Sometimes I thank the emotion for stopping by and for reminding me that I am human.

This process validates rather than fights the feeling.

Key:

Fighting or suppressing emotions derails my time management.
Validating and identifying an emotion normalizes my feelings and takes much less time to address.

Another time saver is when I pray, “God here is________. Take it. Lead me in the direction I should go.” I am done figuring out anything that my Higher Power can bust through walls and decipher for me.

We have grace for others, we need to have grace for ourselves too. I’m trying to do so anyway. It is hard!

God has adamant love for you. You are not alone.

Proverbs 3:26 …for the LORD will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

All the above being said, emotions that get in the way ongoing should be addressed with a professional. Be brave and seek help from your doctor or therapist as needed. There is so much power and freedom to be found in tapping into the truth about ourselves.

Glenna

4 People You Meet at a Writers Conference

Published on June 20, 2018June 23, 2018 by Glenna S. EdwardsLeave a comment

I have lost count of how many professional seminars and trainings I have sat through in my adult life. This year I set a goal to attend a writers conference. I declared that intention out loud to my Masterminds group October 2017.

Then the day before I would be on the Masterminds “hot seat” again May 7, 2018 I knew it was time to report on my goals. Eek! I had the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference (#BRMCWC) on my calendar over nine months. How could I go to my accountability group with anything less than a booked reservation? I checked and there was still room. I reserved my spot 14 days before the BRMCWC.

The first night at dinner I carried my food tray through the cafeteria asking God to lead the way. I knew no one. I fought back nerves and slight loneliness. A group of wonderful ladies welcomed me to sit at their table. Whew! I felt relief. And go figure, one of the first people I met, Lilly, was from Alamogordo, NM. That is the same town where my adult son lives. She came a long way to Black Mountain, NC. I found comfort in her presence.

The next person I met said she was returning after this conference crushed her dreams four years ago. She described running away in tears last time. Alrighty then. I whispered to God, I’m a big girl, but You’ve got this right?

From that moment forward, I enjoyed meeting a new-to-me world of people:

Professionals. Literary agents, publishers, promoters, and editors really do exist. I studied in college and since have read hundreds of articles and books about them. I’ve written query letters to them. I’ve received rejection letters from them. They are real people flesh and all. I met with eight professionals in publishing over the course of the week. I appreciate their wisdom.

Inspirational Folks. A couple times each day attendees gathered to listen to keynote speakers. I leaned in to hear what they said and made notes to bottle their encouragement so that I can revisit their words. I value the paths they’ve forged.

New Friends. It was fun to listen to other writers talk about their work and lives! We celebrated one another and exchanged contact information. I am still in touch with several authors and it is wonderful to feel part of the writing world! Take Kelly A. Wypych, for example. Kelly ran 100 miles consecutively in April. 100 miles! Her blog is great and her Instagram posts @kawypych sing to my soul. Here’s a pic of Kelly and me at our first writers conference together:

You. You know how you can’t really see yourself, but you walk around in the body that is “you”? Yeah, that’s a weird thought, but sometimes I suspect we disconnect from the most authentic “you” there is. We spend each day with eyes that see outward but can’t see our 360-degree self easily. When I walked by mirrors or spoke into mirrors to prepare for my book pitches I felt like I was meeting myself for the first time.

Hello, You. Hello, Writer.

Oh, you’ve been a writer at heart since 4th grade?

How interesting. Nice to meet You.

It was good to spend some time with the you that is me. I think part of personal growth involves getting to know ourselves better.

I give thanks to God for all the people at BRMCWC and for all that I learned. I thank Him for leading my path. It was a wonderful experience.

Psalm 9:1 I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.

Glenna

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