Beautiful, Lore - thank you for this. Settling into that paradoxical reality has been my great challenge of adulthood, as I so easily let the grief overshadow the rest.
Merry Christmas, Lore. Thank you for sharing your heart with us. This has been a sad season for me too. The other day I was telling a sad story to my counselor, but I started laughing. And then I said, "The truth is that I have cried so many tears in my life; sometimes I'm just weary of crying." Thankful for the moments of laughter which punctuate the tears. May Jesus' grace be sufficient for us until that day when He wipes all our tears away.
Sorrowful yet rejoicing seems to be the theme of our days. Both/and rather than either/or. I'm learning, along with the majority of my friends, to live in that tenuous balance. I think we feel that the time to weep and the time to laugh are separate times, yet I'm finding, much like Truvy in Steel Magnolias, that "laughter through tears is my favorite emotion." May we each navigate these days giving copious amounts of grace to others, as well as to ourselves.
Thank you for your words, Lore. They never seem to fail to hit the appropriate mark.
I do believe "...that grief and joy hold hands, that justice and mercy kiss, that peace and chaos are not always at odds..." Yes, we live paradoxical lives, and I understand that better and experience it more accurately every day. Thank you for an excellent post.
Oh man, really feeling this. It's been the flattest of Chrismases here. My wife really wanted to just have a quiet Christmas at home this year instead of making the 3 hour trek to my Dad's. After letting everyone know, my sister (who has truly had a hellish year) texted things I'm sure she'll regret texting and I texted back things I very much do regret. So kind of a really awful Christmas.
Phil, I felt led to remind you that His mercies are new every morning and His faithfulness is GREAT. May the coming days bring reconciliation and renewal. You are loved!
As the oldest adult daughter of divorced parents, I’m the one everyone negotiates through starting December 1st. I thought the holiday expectations would eventually get easier and maybe they will but this year was hard in ways I’ve come to expect and in some really painful surprise ways. I’m so grateful for my own little family, for therapy, for good books to get lost in, a wall full of Christmas cards, and also I’m letting myself experience the pain as well. It’s been a bittersweet seas and you put beautiful words to what so many of us are experiencing.
Thank you for sharing. Merry Christmas to you, Lore, and Nate, and Harper and Rilke too. Sending tidings of comfort and joy, hope and cheer, and peace and goodwill.
So thankful for what you share here- what you are willing to let us see about how you process and exist in the tension of following Jesus in this messed up world. Praying for you and your husband (and the dogs!)
Merry Christmas Lore! That holding hands in the dark is the only way to keep going sometimes, I think. Thanks for sharing yourself with us, and may next year be both gentle and rich for us all
It feels so trite to wish you a Merry Christmas in response to thus. So I shall wish you an authentic Christmas, an embodied, holy, and honest Christmas, a hopeful and restful day. We are a few days out from the solstice - may the light continue to increase for you on this day and the days to come. Very grateful for you and your words.
Merry Christmas, Lore, and thank you for sharing this. ❤️ That is the most realistic pic I think I've ever seen of life with an 8 week old puppy - I can feel the puppy teeth on my hands. 😆
So Perfectly Said Lore! Thank you and blessings my friend 🥰
Beautiful, Lore - thank you for this. Settling into that paradoxical reality has been my great challenge of adulthood, as I so easily let the grief overshadow the rest.
Thank you, Lore.
Merry Christmas, Lore. Thank you for sharing your heart with us. This has been a sad season for me too. The other day I was telling a sad story to my counselor, but I started laughing. And then I said, "The truth is that I have cried so many tears in my life; sometimes I'm just weary of crying." Thankful for the moments of laughter which punctuate the tears. May Jesus' grace be sufficient for us until that day when He wipes all our tears away.
Thank you.
Sorrowful yet rejoicing seems to be the theme of our days. Both/and rather than either/or. I'm learning, along with the majority of my friends, to live in that tenuous balance. I think we feel that the time to weep and the time to laugh are separate times, yet I'm finding, much like Truvy in Steel Magnolias, that "laughter through tears is my favorite emotion." May we each navigate these days giving copious amounts of grace to others, as well as to ourselves.
Thank you for your words, Lore. They never seem to fail to hit the appropriate mark.
I do believe "...that grief and joy hold hands, that justice and mercy kiss, that peace and chaos are not always at odds..." Yes, we live paradoxical lives, and I understand that better and experience it more accurately every day. Thank you for an excellent post.
Oh man, really feeling this. It's been the flattest of Chrismases here. My wife really wanted to just have a quiet Christmas at home this year instead of making the 3 hour trek to my Dad's. After letting everyone know, my sister (who has truly had a hellish year) texted things I'm sure she'll regret texting and I texted back things I very much do regret. So kind of a really awful Christmas.
Phil, I felt led to remind you that His mercies are new every morning and His faithfulness is GREAT. May the coming days bring reconciliation and renewal. You are loved!
An amazing post. I’m saving to read over and over. Thanks for your wisdom.
I loved this piece. Thank you for sharing your heart through your writing.
As the oldest adult daughter of divorced parents, I’m the one everyone negotiates through starting December 1st. I thought the holiday expectations would eventually get easier and maybe they will but this year was hard in ways I’ve come to expect and in some really painful surprise ways. I’m so grateful for my own little family, for therapy, for good books to get lost in, a wall full of Christmas cards, and also I’m letting myself experience the pain as well. It’s been a bittersweet seas and you put beautiful words to what so many of us are experiencing.
Thank you for sharing. Merry Christmas to you, Lore, and Nate, and Harper and Rilke too. Sending tidings of comfort and joy, hope and cheer, and peace and goodwill.
So thankful for what you share here- what you are willing to let us see about how you process and exist in the tension of following Jesus in this messed up world. Praying for you and your husband (and the dogs!)
Merry Christmas Lore! That holding hands in the dark is the only way to keep going sometimes, I think. Thanks for sharing yourself with us, and may next year be both gentle and rich for us all
It feels so trite to wish you a Merry Christmas in response to thus. So I shall wish you an authentic Christmas, an embodied, holy, and honest Christmas, a hopeful and restful day. We are a few days out from the solstice - may the light continue to increase for you on this day and the days to come. Very grateful for you and your words.
Merry Christmas, Lore, and thank you for sharing this. ❤️ That is the most realistic pic I think I've ever seen of life with an 8 week old puppy - I can feel the puppy teeth on my hands. 😆