Room to Grow.

A Life Update... and The Unexpected Sermon My Houseplants Preached

clears throat awkwardly
Heyyyyyyyyyyyy. How you doing today, friend?
It’s been a while, I know…
But in my defense!!!
I did tell y’all I did not know how often you’d see me in The Bone Yard this year!

So don’t fight me. I’m here right now lol.
Let’s just enjoy each other’s company, eh?

Shall we give a wittle life update?
I think we should!

---

_{Life’s Latest}

Oh man… where do I begin???

I’ve been in my travel bag lately—both in and out of the country.
My current favorite place stateside that I keep returning to is Philly.
Heck, I’m going there again next weekend for a concert lol.

But the most beautiful place I’ve seen this year so far was Mexico.

I spent my 24th birthday this past June on the waters of Mexico with my family and the love of my life. It was amazing—beautiful, breathtaking, and every synonym for gorgeous. I had an absolute ball, and my sister came all the way from Pittsburgh to celebrate with me.

The biggest surprise of the last six months, though?

I got engaged!!!

Like... what????? Me???

The girl who used to holler from the depths of her chest that she’d never marry or have children?

I guess it’s true—we make our plans, and the Lord laughs at them lol.

I’m truly grateful that His plans are not my plans because they’ve always unfolded into something better than I could’ve imagined.

I love this man.

And if you’ve been reading my other blog platform (insert shameless plug here—Probably Not Proofread) you’d know just how deep my love for him goes.

And finally, one of the biggest highlights of the last six months has been realizing that I've found more joy in the little things than in the "big moments."

I’ve become a plant mommy to four wonderful little babies.

I’ve moved to a new state and found myself back with my mother—and, surprisingly, I’ve been enjoying it.

I’ve spent so much time with friends and family—living, laughing, and loving.

I’ve rediscovered my love for a good story and have been getting lost in books again.

Life has been good. Really good, actually.

Yes, I have been challenged in so many ways.
Being diagnosed with PCOS (now called PMOS) and navigating everything that comes with it mentally, emotionally, and physically—including the worries surrounding my fertility.
Grieving the life I thought I'd be living in my twenties.
Grieving the loss of my father because even after years, grief doesn't disengage from you.
Moving back in with my mother and wrestling with the feeling that I'd somehow failed because I needed more support.

There’s a long list of lows that accompany the highs of life.

But man...

They make me appreciate the highs so much more when they arrive.

And, being the natural student of life that I am, I’ve been learning a lot along the way.

---

What I’ve Been Learning:

My beautiful plant babies have been teaching me that growth is extremely messy.

I underestimated the first couple of repottings for my children.

I thought I was just going to scoop out some dirt, swap pots, and it'd all be cute and aesthetic.

No ma’am. I was wrong. Extremely wrong.

That first repotting of my tomato plant almost took me out.
There was dirt EVERYWHERE as I tried to move my little plant from one home to another.

I was sweating.
I was getting hot.
I was getting frustrated.
I was flustered.
Because I thought it would be easy.

My second time trying to repot my plants, I came prepared…
Or so I thought.

I bought a tarp and some gloves and said,
”There will be no dirt on the floor this time!”

LIAR!!!

Man, dirt was still EVERYWHERE.
And this time, it wasn’t just one plant I was uprooting and repotting.
I was repotting all four of them.
Once again—hot and sweaty, flustered and frustrated.

It’s messy and wet.
You get dirty.
Sometimes you look around at the chaos you've made and wonder if you're doing it right.
But that’s the price that comes with growth.
Because I’d rather repot my plants into something bigger and better,
Than to let them stay in a place too small for who they are becoming.
It’ll only restrict their potential.
And eventually, it’d hurt them. Maybe even kill them.

My books have also been teaching me to enjoy the little things in life—its quiet moments and subtle nuances.

There was a time when I was knee-deep in self-help books, and that was all I read.

But over time, I burned out on them and realized something:
I'm not a project. I don't need constant fixing.

So I have found myself face-to-face with my childhood love—stories.

If you ask me, I’d say reading a good story (and sometimes writing one) has alsways been my first love.

And in this season, I’ve been learning that fruit lies not just in how we treat others, but in the way we also treat ourselves.

Yes, the Bible says that we will know them by their fruit, and the treatment of others is deeply important to God. But I also believe that just as much as God cares about how you treat others, He cares about how you treat yourself.

Have you been loving yourself lately?

Are you finding joy?

Have you been experiencing the peace that surpasses all understanding—the same peace we so often encourage everyone else to pursue?

Are you patient with yourself and your process of growth?

Are you kind to yourself in your thoughts?

Have you been gentle with yourself in your fragile places?

Have you been faithful to yourself and the routines that keep your cup full?

Have you found self-control in the areas where you struggle?

Fruit isn’t just evidence for other people that you belong to the Kingdom.
It’s also evidence for you.

It’s a reminder that God is with you.
That He’s working in you.
That He’s not finished with you.

Because yes, He cares about others.

But my dear, please don’t ever forget...

He cares about you, too.

You are included in the children we so often say God loves…

Looking back over the last 6-12 months, I’ve realized that God has been repotting me too.
I’ve learned from my babies that when they’re repotted, they need a little grace, patience, tender love, and care while they acclimate to their new home.

Maybe that’s where you are, too.
Feeling shaken.
Sitting in unfamiliar soil.
Wondering why God uprooted you in the first place.

Give yourself the time.
Be patient with yourself.
Be gentle with yourself.

Your only option after this…
Is to bloom.

With all the love in the world—
Your friend,

---

May the Lord bless you and keep you. May His face shine upon you, and may He give you peace.

---