What I learned in September

• When the season changes it makes me homesick, really, really homesick.

• Related - flights home are even more ridiculously expensive than they used to be :(

• Since using my brain to study, I have been happier.  Ditto when reading more.

• I could download a copy of my new health insurance card from their website instead of waiting for it in the mail.

• Trimming my daughter's hair was easy peasy.

• When you lack confidence in making a decision, you end up having to enter an internet order three times.

• I was reminded that library sales are the best (and Andre Agassi's autobiography is really rather good).

• McCafe (Premium roast - medium) coffee is my favourite brand to drink at home.

• It's actually possible for us to do low key family activities at the weekend. e.g. go to library, watch airshow from park.

• Involving two other households in your search for your degree certificate means it will, of course, turn up at your own house but you are grateful you found it and that others love you enough to look!

Book Review - Girl Meets Change

Girl Meets Change: Truths to carry you through life's transitions  by Kristen Strong.  

This book seemed like the perfect read for this changing season in my life.  Having recently moved to a new city and state, everything feels different again and the echoes of my continent-change came crashing back to mind.

It's been a few months since we moved, which places me right in what Kristen aptly calls the "murky middle".  During my reading of the book, a few things happened to illuminate the murk, but when I started reading I very much felt in the dark and alone.  Having been told as a child that my best strategy in life is "just to get on with things", I was struck by the kinder counsel in the book to

"Get through it by giving yourself grace amidst the blur.  Get through it by acknowledging the hard feelings while holding on to God's truth.  And remember, he's holding you too. "  p65

Her constant reminders of God's goodness, and how He remembers us, and wants to bless us, helped me to keep trusting when it was hard.  Thankfully, she also made plenty of provision for the times in life where change does appear disastrous and she didn't sugar coat those instances or try to cope with them using 'Christianese'.  Her call to faith and courage in the face of change was realistic:

"Bravery is not the absence of fear but following God through the fear as you believe God's promises.  It's holding on to the facts of our faith more tightly than to our fears for the future..." p148

Kristen made good use of her own story and those of others to illustrate her points in the book.  Sometimes it is easier to connect with the truth when we see how others have done so.  The idea that change can be good is easier for some people than others, and although nobody likes the bad change, seeing the fruit of growth within it, does make it a little more palatable.

The (slightly less) murky middle continues in my life.  And the changes are happening more slowly than I expected, but I am learning to be grateful alongside my impatience!  This book has in a large part, helped change my attitude in that regard.  

With thanks to Revell for my free copy in exchange for my honest review.