You see this toothpaste tube right here? That’s the state of some of us—pressed down, kneaded, twisted, and squeezed till there’s nothing left

Sometimes we try to give when we are empty, and we keep exerting so much energy just to give the last bit of ourselves till we get to a complete burnout…

In previous blog posts, I have written about seasons of waiting, pushing, trusting, and struggling with surrender. And for the first time in all of this, I choose to write about the beauty of surrender.

After my recent bouts of struggling with trust, I felt like I could write a whole sermon on surrender. I try to illustrate this in a pictorial description in this piece

I was reading the scriptures one day and this jumped out at me — “…..You are the light of [Christ to] the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.”

To a truth, I have been in phases of my life when I have had to quit because it was dangerous to continue. I have been in phases where I have had to quit, to re-strategize. I have been in phases where I have had to quit, to recalibrate. But what is important is knowing “when”, so you don’t quit prematurely. As the saying goes, dawn comes just right after the darkest night.

For the past 5 months, I have found myself hiding in a cave, well not literally. But that’s how best to describe my withdrawal from a lot of social things.

In this new age, there is an insane drive for achievement. Everyone wants to make it and make it big. We have promoted the slogans of “Don’t quit, Never Give Up, Keep pushing” for so long that we have failed to also teach people that sometimes it’s okay to take a break, to pause, and recalibrate.

While looking forward to my birthday, I had repeatedly told myself that “Ody no matter what happens, you will be happy, you will focus on the positive and you will be grateful”. So this year I came prepared. Days to my birthday, when I thought I had everything under control, it felt like things were starting to go out of plans.

I am just trying to allow myself to learn something that I have always been scared of. I have already failed a couple of times, asked what some might refer to as the silliest of questions, but you know what? All that doesn’t matter, because I am learning, I am growing.

I don’t know if anyone dislikes waiting as I do. Urrrgghh! I used to find the waiting season as one of the most anxious phases of my life. Sometimes, I wished I could fast-forward to the end to know the outcomes. Although, I trust the end will always be beautiful, but the question remained “when?”

….Whenever I write to myself, I find myself more in awe of my being. I am always marveled at my inner strength and I find the courage to keep pushing in the midst of uncertainties and tough times. So here's a letter I wrote to myself last night and you should also try writing one to yourself too :)

At some point, it felt like I was always trying to be “better than……”. But as I grow older, I discover that there is no need to always strive to be “better than...” rather the emphasis should be on growing

Every girl at school usually had this sweater in their bag just in case her period came. If it showed up when she wasn't prepared, she would feel so ashamed. Asking to borrow pad felt like such a sinful request.

I began to ask myself recently, what's it about us humans that we find it difficult to accept this other emotion that is so natural to life? Why are we so quick to want to get people out of a sad phase? Why do we find it so uncomfortable being around people who are sad?

This past week I was stuck! I had a glimpse of what it's like to suffer from information paralysis. I usually pride myself on being able to make quick decisions on what I want without looking back, but this time was different. I just couldn’t make a decision

I wanted to get married in 2020 at the age of 25. So it’s 2021, I am 25 going on 26, and I am not married yet. Am I sad? not at all but rather I am grateful because 2020 was a turning point in my life

For some of us, we find it hard to set boundaries. We find it hard to say no. We find it hard to honor our limits or know when to stop because we have always been "goody-two-shoes"—an identity that I built my life purpose around.  

Sometimes we feel like we have it going worse for us than the people who share their experiences with us. It could be tempting to invalidate their emotions by pointing out our own struggles but in that moment all we need do is pause and listen because we all want to be heard and feel heard