Friday, May 23, 2014

College Retreat Saturday

I'm at a point in this where I no longer want to fake it. I want to give an honest answer when people ask "How are you?" I don't want to put up a wall, wear a mask, and lie about the condition of my soul. I don't even want to sing when we worship, because I know it's not genuinely to and for Him; it's just because singing is something I enjoy (especially in a group).

I don't know where to go now. I don't feel any sort of direction for my life, and there is an endless wall between me and God. Our relationship has been stagnant for so long that sometimes I fantasize about leaving; the town, the state, maybe even the country; in desperate hope that something in my life would change.

I don't know how to bridge this gap. I've told Him "I need you to fight for me". I've even said "Fight ME". There is nothing in me that gives me the power or the will to do it on my own. "Break down my walls. Break down Me. Captivate me. Show me your love. Give me Something. Anything." All these things I've said, yet there seems to be no response. My soul feels so tired and worn down. I can't fight on my own anymore.

All the things I know in my head to be true about God are the same things that my heart refuses to believe. This is not something words can fix; I need Him to intervene in a drastic way.

College Retreat Friday PM

*The next few posts are going to be some journaling from the weekend retreat I went on with my church college group last weekend, as well as some follow up journaling from the week after. These writings have come from a place of truth and clarity, and I am posting more for my own record and security than anything.*



Worthless is my core lie, although I sometimes feel I have more than one (such as Failure). Worthless causes me to feel like I need to fight for the Love and Respect I think I deserve, because I've been trampled and treated like shit my whole life. But that's just my lens. My mom's lens is that I was a difficult child. My dad's lens is that all women are stupid objects to be used, not worth the same as men. This attitude transfers (consciously or not) to his daughter; Me.

I'm used to endless nagging litanies of what I've done wrong, as well as explosive, violent outbursts for something as small as not replacing the toilet paper roll. So it stands that this sort of treatment is what I grew to expect; not the outward behaviors exactly, but the root lies behind them. That if I didn't do things right, I deserved to be treated badly. Conditional love based on not being a Failure. Also, that I had to walk on eggshells; I could not stand up for myself, because doing so would risk my own physical harm. I was (am) not considered valuable enough to refrain from damaging. Worthless.

These core lies, Worthless, Failure, create a cycle in which I feel like I need to work for and earn Love and Respect, which turns into despair from Failure telling me that no matter how hard I try, it will never be good enough. And the cycle continues.

These lies transfer directly to my relationship with God; and that is where Fear comes into play. Fear tells me that this cycle will somehow become true in my relationship with Him. So I build up high walls and behave as if it IS true (which Fear would have me believe is inevitable). I hide from Him and harden my heart because I am so deeply afraid that Fear is right: that Worthless and Failure and here to stay, and will infect everything I Love.


Friday, May 2, 2014

For me, It's not Over

Every once in a while, I remember you. Deeply. I don't mean I think of you once in a while; I do that quite often. When I remember you, it hurts. When I remember you, I forget the rest of my life.

All I can think about is how my heart would leap when I heard your voice. How it felt, the truest joy to be around you. And your smile, your genuine laugh. How perfectly safe I felt in your arms. Listening to your heartbeat when you held me. The profound connection during our conversations. The pieces of yourself that you gave me make it the hardest to accept. You revealed your soul to me. You confided in me, trusted me, respected me, valued me. Loved me. You told me so many times, and I always felt the truth in it.


It's been almost 2 years since I told you. I exposed my soul to you.


"When our souls meet the ones we are meant to be with our souls never forget."

Never forget.

Never forget.

The thought fills me with hope and despair.

There are 3 options with this statement. One is that it's true for us, and that you will realize this, which is what I desperately hope for. The second is that it's not true for us, and that my heart will eventually realize it and let go, which would be immensely better than the last option. The last option is that it IS true for us... but you decide to deny/ignore/bury it for the rest of your life. This would be the worst option, because a part of my heart would never be able to move on. You would live your life, but my soul would never forget or fully heal.

I'm remembering you now, and wondering how long it will last this time. How much more pain do I have to try to bury? Will I ever be completely free? Or will I cycle through being fine for a while then something triggering me forever?

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Genevieve's Blessing

Dear Genevieve,

Today is the day I dedicate you to the the Lord; the day I make a vow to raise you in the knowledge and love of the Lord. I promise to teach you to love Jesus with all your heart, mind, and soul, and I pray that you will one day come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

When I chose the name "Genevieve", I did so because I wanted you to have a beautiful, unique, old-fashioned name. I later found that the meaning of your name is "White Wave". With this in mind, I hope that it will serve as a reminder to keep your faith as strong as the ocean's tides.

The day of your birth was the first snow of the year. I will always remember that as a symbol of your innocence and purity. I loved you so much on that day, and my love for you has only grown.

Galatians 5:22-23 says that the fruits of the Spirit are Love, Joy, Peace, Forbearance, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. These are the qualities I hope to see you embody as you grow.

Finally, I want to give you a verse that I pray will direct your life. Psalm 42:1-2, "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?"

Sweet girl, may you ever pant and thirst for the living God.

Love,
Momma

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

The War is Over

Yes the war is over. I'm done fighting with myself. I'm going to take some really good advice that my cousin gave me:
"You'll get through this. No worries. God created a man just for you. Put your trust in Him and pray for Him to give you patience in your waiting. You will need to find a very tiny spot for a memory of this person in your heart, let go of your longing for him, and let it be the past. Then open your heart all the way for the one man that God created for you."



Thursday, January 3, 2013

Dreams of Denial

You've been in my dreams of late. Good dreams. But as much as I enjoy them, I know they're only prolonging my pain. So much pain. I'm still grieving your love. I'm still in denial, waiting for the anger to come. I need the anger to come, because waiting and hoping for the what-if's to come true is just too painful. Anger for me means healing. I'm stuck in between denial and anger, not fully in either one, but not moving on.

Why did you do this to me? You made me fall and fall for you, and in the end you let me fall and chose her over me. I know this, but my heart doesn't. My heart fills my mind with fantasies of you coming back to me. 

My therapist says I need to push you out of my mind. I don't think I can do that, because that would mean letting go of the what-if's, letting go of the hope and possibility that you will come to your senses and realize that no one can love you more than I do. I don't think you or anyone else realizes how fully and completely I do love you. If you did, you wouldn't ask me to do the impossible task of letting you go.

I'm still dreaming. I hope to keep dreaming. I can't stop dreaming. Not yet.

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Voices

He has such a beautiful smile
What a wonderful laugh.
So perfect and unique
I could just bask in it.
Imagining his laugh, his smile
Makes my heart hot with joy
Yet shatters it instantly, continuously.

I heard his voice last night. Twice. Twice he called my name. And that was all. It nearly gave me a heart attack. I'm saying I heard an out loud, audible voice. And it was his, saying my name.

Now we already know I'm crazy. I have bipolar and major depressive disorder, along with some pretty bad anxiety. I don't need to add hearing voices to my list of insanities. 

And the worst part? I want more than anything to hear him again.

The One That Got Away

Tell me that I am loved
Tell me what I'm dreaming of
And I'll tell you I'll be the love of your life
And I'll tell you there's no guilt in this life
     And we can be together
     If only just forever
     And we will be the martyrs
     For, for, for love
It's not an easy break
The hurt spills, overtakes
And I'll be the one that got away
And I'll be your biggest mistake
     And I wish we'd be together
     If only just forever
     And we will dance tonight
     And then say our goodbyes.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Grief

Something my pastor said last Sunday has been sticking in my mind. He was giving a sermon on how to recognize a true friend, and friend that is a gift from God, closer than a brother. He said, "Blood may be thicker than water, but spirit is thicker than blood." What he meant was that although the world says that family is supposed to be your #1, there are some relationships that are greater still because of the presence of the Holy Spirit and the kinship that comes from being brothers and sisters in Christ. These are people you would lay your life down for, even if it meant choosing them over a family member that you may have less of a relationship with.
A few people came to mind during this sermon. One was my best friend Laura. Two were my aunts. The other was the man I asked to marry me 4 months ago.
I'll start with Laura. She is incredible. As far as friends go, she is the best I could ever ask for. She fits me perfectly. Which is why I was very sad when she moved to North Dakota. Grievance #1.
Back in August, my favorite aunt lost her battle with cancer and went home. Almost two months later, another aunt died unexpectedly of an overdose.
Grievances #2 and #3.
And the worst one of all. The man. Our spirits were knit together; at least, that's what it felt like. For 6 years we were friends closer than family. The only person I would choose over him is my daughter. Hands down. No one else would make the cut. Which is why this grief is the worst. I loved him for 6 years and never said anything; until 4 months ago. Unfortunately, he already had a fiance when I revealed my feelings; consequently, we can no longer have contact with each other. I understand her point of view, I really do, but I don't think she understands mine. Not that she needs to. I've accepted the fact that he chose her over me. What I haven't accepted is that I'll likely never see nor speak to him again. He knew my soul. I'm afraid I'll never find that again. And that is the worst grief of all. This soul-wrenching pain; I love him more fully and more deeply than I ever could explain or express. 
There is no healing for me in this. Not in this season. This season is for me to grieve, so please let me. Don't ask me if I'm ok, because I'm not. Don't tell me it's for the best, because I"ll punch you. And don't try to make me feel better, because I don't want to.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Come Wake Me Up- Rascal Flatts

This song completely sums up my life right now.

Letter from a Broken Heart


Why did I have to fall in love with you?!? It isn't fair to have to love someone I cant have, and now I've lost every part of you. All I have left of you is Hugs. I can feel my heart breaking. Actually, it's more of a ripping, tearing feeling. It's like my heart is so full of love mixed with hurt and regret that it can't hold it all and is breaking at the seams. I miss you more than I can bear.
I have to believe that I will someday be healed from this, but in this moment, right now, I can't see past my hurt to what might be, when things might be better. I wrote you letter and told you I was fine and had moved on. You told me I had to let you go, and I told you I did. But that was a lie; I believed it at the time because I had been squashing my true feelings. The unrelenting angst, jealousy, anger, sorrow, and bitterness.
I'm done crying for the moment, but these feelings don't just go away on their own. How can I let you go?!? I loved you for 6 YEARS, and I still do. I think I always will, in a way.

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Little Dancer

My daughter had her first dance class on Saturday, my gift to her for her 2nd birthday. Although she didn't follow directions very well, she had a lot of fun and did well with the other kids.
I am beyond proud to be able and willing to give this gift to her. I never had anything like this growing up, accept for karate, and that lasted only a few months. I wish my parents had cared enough about my development to put me in these types of classes long term. For instance, I always wished I had taken piano, and I plan on starting piano lessons for G when she turns 5. I will start giving her guitar lessons in the next year or so.
I guess the best any of us can do is to do better than our parents did. I want G to have these skills and the work ethic the classes provide as she grows and matures into a girl, a tween, and a young lady. I believe they are skills she will treasure for the rest of her life. Happy birthday beautiful girl!

Friday, November 23, 2012

This is a project I wanted to do to get the dark side of my life out in a positive, constructive way. You can interpret this however you want. The main theme is that life is worth it, even in the darkest places.

And recently...

Hello again. Yes, I'm back. I don't think anyone reads this, so I guess it doesn't really matter. 

I've been spending a lot of time with one of my best friends lately. We've been considering dating each other. He's really sweet, makes me laugh, and is great with my daughter. I feel like God has been prompting me to open my mind to the possibility that he could be the one. I have been hesitant about this, for a number of reasons: one, I was recently fooled into thinking I had found the "one" when it turned out he only wanted one thing; two, I don't want to mess up our great friendship; and three, our political views do not seem to mesh, although we haven't talked about them in depth yet. 

On another note, Ginny is going to be 2 next weekend! Omgoodness, that makes me feel old! She has really blossomed into a wonderful, beautiful, intelligent little girl. She has soft brown curly hair, big chocolate brown eyes, and a smile that's contagious as well as mischievous.

That's it for now. I'll try to post more often.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Updates...

A lot has happened since my last post. Of course it has, I'm a mom now, lol! I'll start with the stuff about Ginny.
She will be 5 months next week. She is teething, and has already cut one tooth (bottom right incisor), and the one right next to it is just about to pop! She is 17 lbs 3 oz and 27in as of today (the lactation consultant brings a baby scale and tape measure with her). She also has an ear infection, which was discovered when I decided to take her to the doctor's office on Easter. I have to give her this stuff that looks, smells, and tastes like pepto-bismol, but is actually amoxacillin, 3x a day. I've been pumping and putting it in breast milk, and I have to wait until she's really hungry because she won't take it any other way- she makes this awful (hilarious) face and spits it out! She rolled over for the first time Sunday night, it was amazing!
On a different note, I was reconciled with an old friend, and although the relationship is different, it feels nice to be on good terms. She is getting married in the fall, and I couldn't be happier for her!
Recently I have been realizing what the future might hold, concerning Genevieve and I, and being her parent. I have realized that although I have a whole list of things I know I will NOT do as a parent, I also don't have much of a plan for what I WILL do. I know I do/will love her unconditionally; that goes without saying. But what will I do when it comes time to start teaching responsibility, obedience, character, etc.? All I know is I want to do the best I can for her, which is why I've decided to make time to start reading. I went on Parable's website and scrolled through their list of books on parenting (not all of them, there are over 2000, but I got through a lot of them). Then I found the books that looked appropriate and relevant to me and put them on hold at my local library. My plan is to read these books (some of them are audio books, which makes it easier for me), and then buy the ones that I think would benefit me more with ownership. It's going to be hard trying to balance this with parenting, schoolwork, housework, and church stuff, but I think it is something that is necessary. Please pray for me and my time-management skills.
I think that is all I have for now. I will try to stay current here, but no guarantees (like I said, I'm pretty busy, lol).

Friday, December 31, 2010

Relationships.

Monday night I had a dream that I got married to my ex boyfriend. It was, by far, the best dream I have ever had. I saw him the next day and we had a short conversation for the first time in 3 years. I know he will never see this, so I don't mind saying on here that it made me miss him and that connection. He has a different girlfriend now, and I have moved on and healed from that relationship, but that doesn't mean I'm not nostalgic about it every once in a while. Actually, what I miss most is the friendship that we had even before we were going out.
I just read on facebook that my ex best friend is engaged. I introduced her to her fiance, but I doubt I'll get an invite to the wedding.
I'll be 20 this summer. My daughter will be 9 months old then. When everyone else is getting married and going to school, I am taking care of a newborn.  I would choose my daughter over a man every single time, obviously, and I love her so much. I just can't help but wonder when someone will propose to me? Or even ask me out? How many guys would not feel awkward about me bringing my baby with me on a date? I'm willing to wait, because I know I deserve to be valued. I know I deserve to be in relationships (friendships and otherwise) with people that treat me with respect, as an equal, not with people that look down on me as if they know better than I do (hence my "ex best friend").
Being a mother, I feel more like myself than at any other time in my life. I feel more whole, if that makes sense, as if this is what I was meant to do, to be. I have been forming new friendships lately, with the women in my MOPS group and people in the college group at church. It feels good to be in relationship with people that support me and respect me as an equal, no matter what the age difference. I guess my point in all of this is that I deserve more than what I was getting before, in reference to how people treat me, and that I will no longer tolerate being treated badly to keep the good parts of a relationship.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Someone- a peer- told me I was their role model the other day. As you can imagine, I was baffled, and a little shocked! When I asked her why, she said, "Because throughout everything you have shown such strength and such courage and you really inspired me to become a better person. I was kind of going through a scary time in the beginning of the college thing, and I thought of you and your mountains of strength and courage, and those thoughts made me feel better and made me think "Hey, if she can do it, I can do it.""

I have always considered myself a strong person. I have always been, and will probably always be, stubborn, hard-headed, strong-willed, and strong-hearted; and those are qualities I am proud to have.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Moving on

Why is it so taboo to say you miss someone no longer in your life, or a moment gone too quickly? I guess I'm feeling nostalgic; two of the people that I've felt the closest to in the past how ever many years... well, I feel life urging me to let them go and move on. I will miss them, and though their influence on my life will not be nearly the same, I hope it will still be there in small remnants of what I was used to. They were the ones who've loved me, and told me so; and because of that (and life experiences), I clung to them like a person dying of thirst to a glass of water. They cared about me in ways that I needed (although not always necessarily ways that I wanted).
I feel sorry in one aspect; that I will never truly be able to express the depth of my gratitude or what they mean to me. I believe that it is time for me to move on, and because I believe that, there is peace. I feel ready... which is leaps and bounds away from just a year ago, when I frequently panicked at the idea of them not being in my life. I know now that this is normal and healthy. Leaving people in the seasons they were meant for, instead of dragging them along behind... it's life. But there is some sadness. Enough so that I can justify saying a heartfelt "I will miss you" when the time comes.

Friday, June 25, 2010

Thoughts on being pregnant...

Just some things I've noticed the past few weeks:

I have reclaimed my childhood habit of dumping out the Frosted Mini-Wheats and picking out the most frosted ones to put in my bowl. Then after all the decently frosted ones are gone (which is about half the box), I have no desire to eat the rest.

I am not yet showing, which is something I consider a blessing from God, and my belly fat, especially since I am almost 5 months (I am 18 weeks)!

My ultrasound is scheduled for two weeks from yesterday, so Thursday, July 8th. I am getting very anxious to see the creepy/adorable little outline of my baby, and find out the sex (even though I am almost positive it's a boy). Speaking of boys, I have narrowed down the first name for that gender to Gabriel.

The mood swings that are typical to pregnancy, not to mention my everyday life (it's so fun being me), or as I like to refer to it, pregnancy insanity, have been manageable and almost nonexistent since I started taking that blessed little blue pill, Prozac.

I am getting quite irritated with people constantly asking me if I am going to keep this baby. SO STOP! As of right now, the answer is YES, THIS BABY IS MINE FOREVER. Also, I couldn't care less about your opinions or advice, since this decision is going to affect the rest of MY life (and of course, the baby's), NOT yours, so stay out of it! Yeah, you can say you only have my and my baby's best interest at heart, but that's a poor excuse, and I don't want to hear it, because it's like saying that I DON'T have our best interests at heart. Which leads me to say HOW DARE YOU. (To those of you reading this who have been nothing but supportive, this is not aimed towards you, it is a rant of emotions that I have bottled up towards people that think it is okay to question my sanity/responsibility/maturity/ability to be a good mother (this last one irks me the most, because anyone who knows anything about me knows I am going to be a GREAT mom.), and think it is okay to tell me how to live my life, as if they know how to do that better than me.)

One of the reasons I feel that parenting is the right way to go this time, is that I actually FEEL like a mother this time. When I was pregnant with Miya, I was completely at peace with my decision to relinquish her for adoption; also, I felt very little motherly instinct towards her before and after she was born. Don't get me wrong, I love her very much; she is my daughter. But somehow, my heart always knew that I was not her mother. This time, however, I am so in tune with my motherly instinct that just the thought of seeing my baby for the first time brings me to tears.

I have also given some significant thought to how I am going to raise this child, and I have come to the conclusion that there are two things I have deemed absolutely necessary to my child's life: unconditional love, and God. This being said, I know I already have the unconditional love part covered. I feel as if my heart would burst if there was any more love in it for this child inside of me. I know that I want to implement God into my child's life from the day he (ore she) is born (through praying out loud with him, bringing him to church, reading the Bible to him, and so on), but is has occurred to me that I need to get my own spiritual life on track long before I try to start sharing it with my child. I'm not really sure how to do that, but I am trying, by praying, reading my Bible, going to church, and writing in my prayer journal. Admittedly, I have not been doing this on a regular basis like I know I should be, and I think that is due to the most disturbing part of my lack of relationship with God so far; my once fiery passion for God has been nonexistent the past few months. It's like in that song "Rediscover You":
I need to just admit
My faith is paper thin
I'm feeling so burned out
On religion
I say an empty prayer
I sing a tired song
I need to just admit
That the passion's gone
And I want to get it back...

Anyways, I'm tired and hungry (I can literally feel my blood sugar dropping), and I have a friend's open house tonight, so that's all I have to say for now. I will try to update regularly, and I know for sure that I will after my ultrasound. Until then, please pray for me, my baby, and my spiritual life.