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~The Notebook~
Stop in and stay awhile!

May 26, 20242 min read
Behind this face
Before you is a face. A face in a moment of jubilee. In a moment of rejoicing. But you have yet to see what lies beyond the moment....
170


Jul 18, 20234 min read
Once upon a sunflower
The real story of sunflowers extends beyond the sunshine they exude. I don't know if you have ever seen how sunflowers glow. Their bright...
1330


Jul 18, 20232 min read
In the valley of the shadow
What feels like death will not overcome you, and you are not alone. The truth is, I have been far from my best this semester and year....
110


Aug 7, 20223 min read
Long time coming
Have you ever waited for peace - for healing? Healing can be a long time coming. It often feels like something elusive, something you...
250


Dec 27, 20212 min read
Year's end reflections...
Thank you. My eyes are wide open, still seeing. My vocal cords still vibrating, my voice still singing. My lungs still rising, my heart...
220


Oct 30, 20212 min read
Hey beautiful...
Why is it that we need others to validate our beauty? What about our culture makes us feel like in order to feel beautiful someone has to...
110


Oct 24, 20214 min read
Finding beauty in the unexpected
Sometimes, our most unexpected and unplanned moments are the most beautiful ones. Let that settle. I am a planner at heart. And I also...
1600


Oct 17, 20212 min read
Hilly reflections
I’m sure you are familiar with hills - or you’ve at least heard of them, maybe seen pictures of them. Do me a favor and picture them, see...
60


Oct 10, 20213 min read
Made for More
We’re made for more than this. We’re made for more than comparison, for more than sleepless nights, constant studying, and feelings of...
220


Sep 30, 20212 min read
For the breaking & breakable heart...
Friend, if you are human, you know that relationships hurt. Even the potential for a relationship hurts. That uncertain space where you...
170


Sep 19, 20212 min read
When you're faced with yourself
Recently, I’ve been coming to terms with just how complicated and messy life can be. As a result, I’ve come face to face with just how...
160


Sep 12, 20213 min read
An Unplanned Reset
Things never, ever, go according to plan. *Written earlier this week. As I write this, I am sitting in my room awaiting the results of my...
140


Sep 5, 20212 min read
Step away
Step away, darling. Take a step back and forget the little things that seem like monsters. The tests, the exams, the never-ending...
110


Aug 29, 20211 min read
Long, but never late
It's been far too long. I've missed this space. If there is anything I have learned this summer, it's that making time for the things and...
130


Jul 25, 20211 min read
A rarely asked question
There are some questions we rarely ask each other. This is one of them. Are you ok? Has the world made you cry or rejoice today? Either...
110


Jul 11, 20215 min read
Unwanted & Wanting
It’s so easy to long for love, to look for it in human hearts and relationships, and to leave wanting. It’s so easy to anticipate full...
190


Jun 27, 20213 min read
Screams of Inadequacy
What do you do when life screams that you are inadequate? When the person you so desperately want to take notice of you doesn’t so much...
283


Jun 20, 20211 min read
Embracing the sometimes
Sometimes, I wish loving weren’t so painful That giving wasn’t so exhausting That just living and being wasn’t so complicated. But what...
160


Jun 13, 20212 min read
The little things
Recently I had a stressful day. You are probably saying “Welll that’s me every day!” I feel you, dear friend. Life is hard. This day was...
181


Jun 6, 20212 min read
Caught
Have you ever been caught? Maybe it’s between two worldviews, two ideologies. You have what you’ve been told from birth, the things that...
120


May 30, 20212 min read
Swimming voices
Hi dear reader, Today, I have a question. Where is your voice? In a world where it feels like the little we have to say drowns in an...
140


May 23, 20212 min read
Channel Crossing, Silence, and You
Have you ever felt like a nuisance? You're trying to reach out to someone and you feel like maybe you shouldn't, because why would they...
160


May 16, 20213 min read
Loving the closest thing
I believe the first step to living joyfully is fully loving the person that you are most familiar with on this planet. You know, that...
160


May 9, 20213 min read
Defining love
Let’s talk about love. No, I’m not talking valentines and significant others - let’s define love as we will be talking about it on Joy...
281


Apr 30, 20213 min read
Practical Joy
We’ve asked why joy. And we’ve defined joy in light of the journey we are taking here on Joy Untainted. Now, let’s get practical. I love...
271


Apr 30, 20214 min read
Joy Unchanging
Joy. Life isn’t always comfortable. In fact, life can take cruel turns that leave us asking whether true joy even exists. This entire...
251


Apr 30, 20213 min read
First post reflections: Why joy?
Ok, so you may be asking - why write about joy? And to be honest, I asked myself the same thing. There are a number of things I could...
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