It’s been a really long time since I last posted on here, but I haven’t forgotten about this blog. Truthfully it’s not even that I’ve necessarily felt uninspired. So many times over the past few months I have thought about writing, but my thoughts seemed to be jumbled up in my head with no way out and not a shred of clarity. I needed some time to process internally and with those close to me. This year has certainly been challenging in all kinds of surprising ways, but there’s something to be said about being forced into a direction you might not have been brave enough to endeavor on your own and being given the opportunity to redirect and jump back on the path designed for you – uniquely for you. A testament that no matter how far we stray God is always there reeling us back in, pulling us back into HIS current.

The reality of life lived is that it’s a lot messier than it seemed as a kid. Life is messy no matter which way you look at it. But it’s what you do with your mess and how you choose to look at your mess that makes all the difference. At dinner one night with my beautiful, funny, smart friend, Donna, we were talking about life as we commonly do and she said something wise, as she commonly does:

“Life is way more like a painting party than a fancy dinner.”

Painting is work and it’s not always fun. It can be challenging, time consuming, tedious, and strenuous. A fancy dinner on the other hand is the total opposite, it’s all about relaxing and enjoying the finer things in life. Nevertheless, the reality of the day to day in life is not so comparable to a fancy dinner party. Donna was right, life IS way more like a painting party than a fancy dinner.

There’s another important lesson in that statement though. Donna said “painting party,” not just painting. You have a choice in the attitude in which you approach everything. You can grumble and complain about it or you can turn the ordinary tasks into a party – quite literally. If you’re going to do work, you might as well do it with some of your closest friends, a little bit of laughter, and create some memories! After knowing Donna for five minutes you’d learn that she lives her life by the principle of turning the mundane of life into a party. No matter the task, no matter the mountain, there’s always a silver lining and always an opportunity to brighten every situation.

No, life isn’t always a fancy dinner. Yes, life is way more like a painting party. So you better grab your paintbrush and your closest friends and start making some memories!