I am from

Happy Friday, friends!

So I discovered a poem tucked away that was titled 'I am from...' that I must have written 10 years ago. I loved reading it, but decided to re-write it because I am now 'from' more things than I was back then and I thought it would be a neat exercise to discover what has shaped me up to this point in my life.

I heard (read?) someone say something along the lines of: How do you know where you're going if you don't know where you've been? I think there is such truth to that, knowing your story helps to guide you on your journey.

Though this is a bit of a departure from what I've been doing the past few Fridays in My Favorite Things!, I still thought this would be fun. I think that I wrote the poem in my high school creative writing class... it might have been my original idea, it might not have been. I might have written it in college? Maybe? It is rare that I have a completely unique and original idea, so if this isn't my idea, I apologize! Still... think about where you are from... and where you are going...

i am from…

i am from a family of five who grows closer each year and two older sisters who i idolized

i am from small-town heritage, 4^th of july parades, neighborhood summer tag, and walks to the pond

i am from the wilderness: climbing 14ers, camping, rock-climbing, and skiing

i am from a dedication to marriage, to pursuing dreams, and to selfless giving

i am from the oak ridge boys, john denver, and peter, paul & mary

i am from finishing two triathlons and craving more finish-line moments

i am from the history channel, questions, and an insatiable quest for knowledge in books

i am from unconditional love, and learning how good my jesus is

i am from a devotion to education; sisters, aunts, moms, and grandmas charting my path to teaching

i am from tradition; walking on feet, drawing names, family dinners, family summer vacations to the old swimmin’ hole, and bedtime tuck-ins

i am from marrying the boy who stole my heart when i was 18 years old

i am from supporting a husband who served 4 years in an army special operations unit

i am from 3 deployments and countless other goodbyes, and knowing the middle east more intimately than i ever thought i would

i am from seasons of heartache, doubt, and worry only to be conquered by love, faith, and the knowledge of what hope is

i am from 5 years of being married to my best friend, discovering how life-giving and fun marriage is, and the hope of beginning a family with this man

i am from finding my gifting and passion in teaching, nominations of best teacher awards, only to be taken down new paths without teaching into writing

i am from life-long friendships, both new and old

i am from fighting for peoples’ hearts

i am from ‘love wins’, good stewardship, and knowledge that everything is spiritual

i am from challenge, discovering my backbone, growth, and redemption