Note by Note

 Hello friends! It's been a long while since I've posted, but I thought I would jump over and share some blatantly honest thoughts with you all.  I've been struggling with so many emotions over the last few months. Fear. Peace. Joy. Hope. There are so many things I want to do, yet the question of if I'll get to do them. There are so many things I want to be, yet I wonder if I'll ever measure up.  I want to be a writer. I want to write stories that will change the world, that will shake a person to their core, and point them to my Savior. Yet there's the little niggle of fear in the back of my mind, the whisper that says, "You'll always be a fraud. You'll always have to put on a show." I want to achieve Finals in the National Bible Bee Competition. Yet there's the surmounting pressure that says, "You'll never be regarded as a real semi-finalist or finalist. You're not as spiritual as the other semi-finalists. You're not at t...

Grab that cup of tea, or coffee, or even some hot chocolate. Curl up next to the fire. Brrr, it's cold outside. Look, sunshine! Is that a squirrel romping around the maple tree? I wonder what he's thinking, if he's hoping it'll be warmer soon. Happy Friday, friends, and I'm so glad it's finally here! What do Fridays mean to you? For me, it means the end of the school week. It means hours at work Saturday before coming home to a house of sunbeams. It means a good book Sunday afternoon while my family watches All Creatures Great and Small. It means fun, family, and rest are just around the corner. But first, it means cleaning day.  Yes, it means that we have to vacuum and scrub and dust our lovely house. It means itchy eyes and an avalanche of sneezing if I happen to be in charge of dusting. It means a sink free of toothpaste when I finish cleaning the bathroom. It means a floor with no sand once my brother is done vacuuming. Oh, it means work, but it's teamwo...