New Year

And here we are again. New Year’s Eve. Another year is nearly gone and the next is literally only a few hours away. It is time again to make those New Year’s resolutions and to look back on what happened over the past 365 days. For me those two things go hand in hand. And this is how that New Year’s Resolution began…

“Today is the first day of the rest of my life. But it is also the first day of 2015. Which also happens to come very close to the close of an old chapter and the opening of a new one in my life. A chapter that held many great adventures. New places, some that will become a very big part of my life. New people. Some could stay for a very long time, some may just be passing through. This new chapter in my story, this chapter that begins with the opening of a new year, promises to be filled with adventures, both fantastic and terrifying. Challenges, some will be easy, some extremely difficult. And many changes, some minor, and some will change everything. Even though this New Year promises to hold many scary things, I know that there will be good things too.

In the beginning of a new year the idea of a new year’s resolution comes to mind. So, as most people’s New Year’s resolutions are things like eating healthier, exercising more, or to stop smoking, mine is a little different. My goal is to write one page a day. And by the end of the year I will have a story of my life in this New Year. I will be able to look back and see how much has changed. Because a lot can happen in a year. So, this is page one. Page one of a three hundred and sixty-five page book. A book that promises to be quite the adventure story.”

And so it began… I was going to write one page a day for the entire year. Every night, before I went to bed, I would write a page about what I did that day. It was kind of like a journal or a diary, but it was more like keeping a record of what happened over the past year. I would try to think of something good that happened each day. Sometimes I succeeded and sometimes I completely failed. Some entries did not make it to a full page and some expanded to over 4 pages long. But something I did not fail was keeping this New Year’s resolution. With the exception of maybe one or two entries that I ended up writing the day after they were supposed to, I did write about every single day.

Looking back at my year through these Page a Day entries I’ve realized that I have had a very… interesting year... It was a year of preparation. It was a year where much of what I did was in preparation for the adventures that would come in this coming year. Beginning with this blog. I started this blog a month or so before the New Year, but over this past year I have learned a lot by having a blog. I am learning to share my writing, I feel like I’m making a difference, and it just brings me so much joy to write! In January I got my braces on. I am unfortunately going to have them on a bit longer than I hoped, but I am almost done. I also bought a car this year!

Over the year I have lost a few people I thought would be in my life forever. People I never thought I would lose. But I have also gained quite a few people who will be in my life for a long time to come.

This year did hold some adventures, just not the ones I was expecting. I went camping by myself, I spent a week in Virginia Beach, and I went on many mini adventures to other random places. I did not end up back in Roatan. I can’t remember if I’ve ever mentioned that on this blog or not, if not, it is definitely a story for another time.

This year has been complicated and difficult for me, and I’m sure the same is true for many more. It definitely had its bad points, but we all must remember that there were good points too. Even though much of the year may have been difficult, we can look back and know, good or bad, everything that happened this year will prepare us for the year to come.

Writing my page a day has certainly helped me get a new perspective on life. It forced me to think back through what happened that day, it helped me to learn from my mistakes, gave me a place to write down my dreams, and even gave me inspiration for a few blog posts as I sorted out my thoughts. I will not continue my page a day, but I will continue to write in a journal this coming year. And I encourage you to do the same if you don’t already.

My New Year’s Resolution this year may or may not take less effort than last years. I will write one good thing that happens each day on a card. Then I will put that card in a jar. Then, at the end of the year, I will open that jar and see 365 good things that happened this year. Or, if I am having a bad day, I could open the jar and look at one. It will remind me that not every day is a bad one. I encourage you to do something similar if you can. We could all use a little motivation to find something good in every day. I look forward to seeing what good things I see at the end of the year. I don’t know about you, but for me, this upcoming year promises to be quite exciting.

What was your New Year’s Resolution? Did you succeed? How about this year’s resolution? Let me know in the comments!

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

One Year Anniversary

A year ago today something very special happened. I worked up the courage to do something I never thought I would do. I began to share my writing in a way I never thought I could. I started this blog! And it has been quite a year!

It began as a way to get myself to share my writing without worrying about it so much. They would be short little glimpses into events and what I’ve learned from them, not big long chapter books or poems where every word holds multiple meanings. Less stressful that way.The first post was an explanation of what I hoped to do with my blog and that goal is still very much the same. I want to share my writing and what I learn from different experiences in hopes of encouraging my readers to do some pondering of their own. And through doing that, I hope to maybe make this crazy world we live in just a little bit brighter.

Yesterday I took some time to read through all of the posts, everything from my introduction to the most recent post in November. And something I noticed while I was reading was that it will be a little difficult to write posts this next year because I already wrote about quite a few holidays and those are the easiest posts to write! But that’s ok, I’m sure I’ll find plenty of other things to write about.

I also noticed that through this year of writing these blog posts my writing style has, and continues to, get deeper. In the first few posts they are light hearted and simple. Later posts hold more meaning, they are more personal. And as I continue into this next year of blogging I hope to find a nice balance of the two.

And finally, as I read through all these posts, I realized that I have quite a few favorites. “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, ”Many Hats”, “Street Sweeper”, “Life’s a Circus” and “Nature Walk” just to name a few. I hope to add a few more to that list as I continue to write.

I look forward to this next year of writing new blog posts and I hope all of you continue to read them! And please feel free to share my blog with your friends and family! Thank you all for your support!  Do you have a favorite blog post of mine? Let me know in the comments!

If you would like to stay updated on when I post a new post or any other writing I’m doing, please feel free to like my Facebook page! Just look up “Jessica Page” and it should come up, or click on the link on the upper right hand corner of this page.

Thank you for reading! Here’s to another year!

Shoe Box

Ok. You just bought a new pair of shoes and now you need to get rid of the box. But before you do that, think about that single shoe box. Now, imagine 100 of those shoe boxes. How about thousands? Millions? Now imagine every single one of those thousands and thousands of shoe boxes filled to the top with toys, school supplies, and hygiene items like soap and toothbrushes. Now imagine that every single one of those boxes, each and every one, will go to a child who won’t otherwise get a Christmas present this year. Children in need who don’t have things like pencils and toothbrushes. This has been the goal of Samaritans Purse with Operation Christmas Child every year since 1993 and I am so proud to be a part of it for so many years.

For as long as I can remember I have packed at least one shoe box a year with toys, school supplies, and hygiene items for kids all over the world. I remember that I would often have one special box every year. One box that would be for a girl about my age and it would have some items that I pick out special, things like rubber ducks or knee high socks. Things that I really enjoy. Then I would write a letter introducing myself to the little girl who would receive my box. Sometimes I would even get a letter back! In addition to this one little box I would pack dozens of others. Ever since I was little I have been amazed by how good it feels to know that I had a part in bringing joy to children all over the world!

Last year I helped pack 82 boxes, this year I had a part in packing 108  boxes. One hundred and eight smiling children! And that will only be a small part of the eleven million Operation Christmas Child hopes to get this year! It amazes me every year that God can use me here, right here at home, to make such a difference for a child, or a hundred children, in another country!

I look forward to packing boxes every single year. And I look forward to the day when I can pack boxes with my own children. It is a wonderful experience that means so much to those doing the packing, those who deliver, and those who receive them. And it all starts with something as simple as one single shoe box.

 

If you want to join in on this wonderful event there is still time! The week for pickup is November 16^th to the 23^rd. This week! Just fill a box and get it to one of the pickup spots. Or you can plan to do them next year! You can find out more information on their website www.samaritanspurse.org I know, I’m starting to sound like a commercial, but this is just such an amazing event that means so much! It has become a tradition in my house, maybe, if it isn’t already, it will become a tradition in yours too!

Have you ever packed a shoebox for Operation Christmas Child? Tell me in the comments!

 

Cinderella

“Your voice is as beautiful as you are”

I was at a party and my sister and I had just finished playing some music around the bonfire. That was when this twenty year old guy came up to me and gave me this complement.

“Your voice is as beautiful as you are”

I have had guys do things for me before because they thought I was cute. Young waiters going out of their way to make sure my meal is as enjoyable as possible, the young guy collecting carts at Walmart going out of his way to come get mine so I don’t have to put it away myself, I’ve even had a guy at school ask for my number once, but never one so brave as to complement me as this one had. It intrigued me.

Once I got home I started trying to figure out who this guy was. I looked all over Facebook trying to see if I could find him. Not because I wanted to date him, not because I wanted to be friends with him even, simply because I wanted to know the identity of the guy who called me beautiful. I felt like Prince Charming searching for Cinderella. But this guy was certainly not my one true love. So what was I doing? That was when I came across this quote.

“Don’t spend any time this week chasing after a guy. A Godly man will pursue you when the time is right.”

I didn’t need to be Prince Charming; I was supposed to be Cinderella. I know we all have this problem, guys and girls alike. We’re all searching for our one true love when what we should be doing is living our lives as God wants, and then, when the time is right, that one true love will come. When the time is right I will know who I’m supposed to be with. When the time is right he will come to me and we will live happily ever after. I know this guy was probably just hitting on me because I was the only girl his age at the party. Or maybe he really did want to get to know me. I may never know. But either way, I will wait. I will go back to my life after the ball and my prince, whoever that may be, will come to me when the time is right; when God prepares him to do so. There is time to be patient. There is time to wait for your happily ever after. Because in this world, the magic doesn’t wear off at midnight.